There's More to Life
by Sui Megami
Summary: Death is on the minds of the Gundam Pilots. Especially Heero's. However, they are shocked when the government passes a law against soldiers. The Gundam pilots now must fight for the right to live. Character death warning! 1xR COMPLETED!
1. The Confinement Act

Kitty-chan: Hi! This is my second Gundam Wing fic, so I'm excited! Up front… I don't own ay of the Gundam Wing characters!

Duo: This had better not be like the last disclaimer you did, Kitty-chan.

Kitty-chan: Nah! I'm gonna do something new!

Quatre: What's that?

Kitty-chan: Well, I thought that Pixie stix are getting kinda old... so I thought up a new thing to do!

Heero: What's that?

Kitty-chan: CLONING MACHINE! 'holds up a small gun'

All sans Kitty-chan: NOOOOOOOO!

* * *

The man jumped over the hindrances in his path as he streaked down the road. He pulled a pistol out of the gun holster on his hip and fired a few rounds at his pursuers, not caring if he hit one or not. Exhaustion pulled at his body, but he denied it with all his might. He couldn't give up now. The chase had been going on for over three hours. The man had long ago deserted his motorcycle, tucking it away to a place where he could access it again if need be. After that, he had continued on foot. Despite the lengthy chase, the pursuers showed no signs of letting up. Rain lashed at his thin body like bee stings, but he paid it no heed. Pain was like emotion. Something to be ignored. He felt a wave of relief bathe him as two large metal gates loomed into view. He took a backward glance at the pursuers before quickly scaling the gates and dropping to the other side to disappear into the darkness of the night. 

The group of men chasing the man stopped at the edge of the private property, not wanting to scale the gates. It would take too long, and they had already lost him. He lifted his radio to his mouth and, panting, began speaking. "All units return to base. Subject has disappeared."

The pursued person ran for a good ten minutes, blindly trying to ignore the exhaustion threatening to steal his consciousness away. But in a few minutes, his abused body gave out, falling to the ground. He attempted to get up, but then gave up, realizing that it was best if he rested his body. His eyes closed and he drifted into a dreamless sleep.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Duo!" Hilde cried, throwing her arms around her boyfriend's neck. Hilde was a younger woman with dark blue hair and thick bangs, which cast shadows upon her glowing violet eyes. Her pale skin gave her a fair look, but her baggy clothes brought her back down to earth.

"Hilde? What's wrong? I usually don't get such an enthusiastic greeting when I go out for fifteen minutes. You must really be hungry." Duo held up the bags of fast food he had just bought. Duo was a man about the same age as Hilde. He had sparkling, life-filled cobalt eyes and thigh –length hair pulled back and braided all the way down. He had a slender frame that was usually covered in black attire.

"Yeah, I know. But, can't I hug my boyfriend without having to explain myself?" She sighed, not removing her arms. She held on tight, not even pulling away to look at him.

"Hilde, what's wrong? You've been acting strange the last few days." Duo untangled himself from her arms and walked to set the bags of food on the counter. He turned only to find her standing behind him, awaiting another embrace.

Duo welcomed her embrace with open arms and returned it. For a while, neither of them spoke, one worried, the other confused. Finally, Hilde spoke, softly and quietly. "Duo... they passed that act. The one against the soldiers." She could feel tears attempting to work their way out of her eyes. But she couldn't let them go. She had to be strong, for Duo.

Duo froze. His breathing even seemed to have stopped. "They passed the confinement act?" he wondered weakly.

"Yeah, but there's more to it. The government blames the Gundams for the start of the war. People remaining from White Fang and Oz have worked their way into power in both the colonies and the ESUN. They've convinced the rest of the government that the war would not have started if the Gundams had not come to Earth." She cried angrily.

Duo held Hilde as if it were she that needed comforting. "Can't say that I'm surprised."

"Huh?" Hilde still didn't move

"Some people just can't get used to or accept peace. As Noin said, it is a lot more difficult to maintain peace than it is to obtain it. There will always be people who oppose peace. Whether they are just malicious or if they are simply uncomfortable with it." Duo let out a heavy sigh.

"What are you going to do?" Hilde, now more than ever, had to work to keep the tears of concern from tracing down her cheeks.

"Well, that depends. Were there any special conditions involving the Gundam Pilots capture?" Duo wondered, hesitantly, almost knowing the answer. Hilde was silent. Duo sighed and lead her over to the couch where they both sat down, slightly facing each other. Duo covered her hand with his own. "What is it, Hilde?"

Hilde took a deep breath and brought her violet eyes to meet his orbs of cobalt. Duo's eyes had that ready-for-anything look in them. She paused and began. "The officials of Oz and White Fang, mainly those two men, Suuchin and Katome, have done a lot of yapping. The confinement act was passed because they convinced everyone else that soldiers are too dangerous to keep around. But they've argued that the Gundam pilots are even more dangerous. They say, 'They started one, they'll start another'. If you pilots are arrested, you will be tried for starting a war, and will be faced with the death penalty." Hilde sighed and dropped her head.

Duo sighed and looked thoughtfully about the room. _So, someone finally decided to try and get rid of us. I guess it was bound to happen sooner or later._ Duo managed a weak smile and gathered Hilde into his arms again. There was a long silence as the couple sat, holding each other, trying to banish their own fears, nightmares, and doubts. Duo took a deep breath. "Hilde..."

"No, Duo!" Hilde pulled away and stood, sending an accusing, yet concerned glare at him. "I know what you're going to say, and my answer to that is no!"

"Hilde...!" Duo growled warningly.

"Duo, if you leave, you'll be worse off than before!" Hilde almost yelled.

"Why do you say that? As the God of Death, don't you think I'd work best alone?" Duo stood as well, putting his hands on her shoulders. "I can't let you get involved in this. If they found out you were sheltering a pilot, they could kill you!"

"I know they could, but Duo! I thought that when you destroyed Deathscythe, you let go of the God of Death title go as well! I'm involved in this as much as you are! I was a soldier once too!"

"Yeah! A soldier from Oz! Suuchin and Katome are going to protect OZ soldiers in case it needs to call on their loyalties again! You are safe for now. But even Suuchin and Katome won't spare you if they discover that you are hiding me! I will only waste that safety!" Duo exclaimed, his eyes burning.

"Duo, I'm staying with you. It'll do you good to have someone to gather information out in the open for you. I love you, Duo, and I don't want you to get hurt." Hilde slowly stepped foreword, her violet eyes soft and warm.

"Ditto, Hilde!" Duo cried forcefully.

"Duo, you're a people person. You need to be around people or your humor and bright spirit go to waste. Please, Duo... allow me to help you." Hilde begged, putting a hand to his cheek.

"Hilde!" Duo was cut off when she broke his will to argue by sealing her lips to his.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Great job, everyone! That was an excellent show!" cried the ringmaster to a local circus. There were murmurs of congratulations amongst the crowd, young and old, before the man dismissed them to bed. The crowd dispersed, filing into the many trailers that littered the back of the festival grounds. Only two people remained. A man, and a woman. They sat on a few of the crates that were stored behind the big top, watching the colors of the sunset dance across the sky. There was a long silence between the two, until the girl spoke.

"Trowa?" The man made no attempt to respond, but she knew he was listening. "Trowa, are you going to fight again? Are you going to leave?"

The man's gaze shifted to his brown shoes. Trowa was a thin man, but every inch an athlete. He had long, thin, but muscular legs, and strong arms. He had an elegant, elven face with dark green, serious, mysterious eyes. One eye was covered thanks to his bangs, which were brushed to the right side of his face. "I am not sure yet."

"You could stay here. The only people here who know you're a Gundam Pilot are you, the ringmaster and I. No one would know." She sighed.

"That may be true for now, but how long can I live my life in such secrecy?" Trowa wondered, his normal eerie calmness settling about him.

Cathrine turned slightly to face him. She was taller than him, and considered herself his protective older sister. She had curly red hair and soft gray eyes. "Haven't you always lived in secrecy?"

"To a certain extent, yes. But, before, no one would recognize me for what I am, simply by looking at my face. I was free to go wherever I pleased. Now I am restricted to this circus." Trowa's voice was dead and emotionless. "While I like living at the circus, I don't think I could live my life like that. Having to hide my face to the point of wearing a mask."

"It wouldn't be forever. Just until the Confinement Act is revoked. Once people see what's really going on, they can rally against the government and!"

"No, Cathy. Ever since Suuchin and Katome got themselves into the ESUN, the people's power has diminished. It's practically non-existent now. They won't be able to do anything." Trowa sighed.

"But, for now at least, will you stay with us?" Cathy requested, her eyes sparkling with concern.

Trowa looked at her, then allowed his thin lips to curve upwards slightly in a smile. "Of course, Cathy."

Cathy smiled brightly, but her smile wilted as she spotted a creature, silhouetted against the sunset, limping toward them. "Trowa? What's that?" She wondered, hopping down from the box she rested on.

The figure continued to approach. After hearing Trowa's name spoken, it spoke as well, its voice raspy. "T-Trowa... It's me..."

_ I know that voice!_ "Quatre!" Trowa raced foreword, catching the Arabian boy as he fell foreword, his legs giving out. "What happened to you?"

"The government... they came. The Maguanacs... tried to protect me... but... resulted in a fight... The Maguanacs! All gone!... Arrested... some... ... ... dead." He panted.

"What happened to _you_ though?" Trowa repeated, feeling grief rise in his gut. Grief for the man in his arms. He suppressed it and continued to wait for Quatre's answer.

"One of the officers... got a hold on me... kicking... punching... and... a knife." Quatre managed.

"A knife? He cut you? Where?" Cathy asked, immediately concerned.

"Leg... and back."

"Come on. We'll get you inside." Trowa scooped the injured man into his powerful arms and ran toward the ringmaster's trailer, Cathy by his side.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Water, Sankan Katome and Akun Suuchin are requesting communication. Should I put it through?"

The brown haired girl looked at her partner with analyzing pale blue eyes. Her partner was a Chinese man. He had short slicked-back black hair caught in a ponytail at the base of his skull. His brown eyes reiterated his question. "Sure, but Thunder, you might need to go into the back. With the Confinement Act and all that, you might not want them to see you. But, as long as the Preventors are around, you should be safe." Water smiled.

Thunder nodded and stood, heading to the back of the control room, out of the pool of vision of the computer screen.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Good morning, Miss Relena." Pagan smiled and bowed as his young charge entered her office.

"Ranya said you had some news for me." Relena mentioned immediately. Ranya was Relena's personal assistant. She was a young woman, not very experienced in politics, but she was learning, through Relena's tutelage. Relena herself was the Vice Foreign Minister from Earth. She was tall with waist length, golden brown hair usually held in a dignified low ponytail. Relena sat at her desk and looked up at her butler with big, liquid aquamarine eyes.

"Yes. The Confinement Act has been passed."

"What?" Relena stood, slamming her hands on her desk. "How? How did Suuchin and Katome convince the entire world? Their arguments were ridiculous and unfounded!"

"Apparently not. But in the case of your Gundam Pilot friend, he is faced with the death penalty. The government blames the pilots for the start of the war."

"The death penalty! No! They can't execute five teens!"

"Well, legally, they are adults now, being nineteen and all. So, they'll be tried as adults." Pagan reminded her.

"But... how could they?" Relena sank into her spinning chair. "There's not enough proof."

"Miss Relena!" Ranya burst in the doors, soaking wet. Apparently, she had been out in the pouring rain. Relena had jut now noticed that it was, indeed raining. "There's a person outside! We are afraid he might be dead!"

"Dead?" Relena stood and ran to the back door. She grabbed her umbrella and headed out into the back yard. The butler and Ranya followed as Relena neared the motionless figure. Relena studied the person, who was lying on their stomach. It was a man. A thin, yet clearly built man. A long black blazer and a small black duffel bag lay to the side, obviously his. He wore a white t-shirt, though with the water soaking it, he might as well have not had a shirt on at all. His dark, somewhat tight jeans were soaked through, and he wore large brown combat boots. The thing that caught Relena's eye was something shining at his slender hip. She took a step foreword and craned her neck to get a closer look. She took a step back as she realized it was a gun. But she paused. _That smell..._ The rain had not yet completely washed away the scent of the man's cologne._ That smell is familiar. Could it...?_ The minute the thought came to mind, he looked incredibly familiar. The mess of chocolate brown hair, the wiry frame lined with toned muscles, and the ever-present gun at his hip. "Heero!" Relena appeared at his side and gathered him into her arms, turning him over onto his back. She checked and confirmed a strong pulse in his neck, then attempted to shake him awake. "Heero! Heero, wake up!" He didn't stir. "Take him inside! Quickly!" Relena ordered.

Pagan took the unconscious man from the concerned woman's arms and headed, slowly inside.

* * *

Read and Review!


	2. Calling the Pilots

Kitty-chan 1: HI!

Kitty-chan 2: What's up?

Kitty-chan 1: Welcome to chapter two! I'm gonna make a clone for every chppy I put up!

Heero: God help us. 'cocks gun'

Kitty-chan 2: Let's get Hee-chan! 'Kitty-chans tackle Heero'

Heero: This is not gonna end pretty. Oh, by the way… the Kitty-chan… s do not own the Gundam Wing characters… Thank God…

* * *

Relena stared at the unconscious man in the bed. He didn't look hurt at all. Simply asleep. The two were in a spare bedroom of the Sanc Kingdom. It had been one day since the man had been found behind the mansion. As near as the medical employees present at the Kingdom could tell, he suffered a bullet wound in the middle of his back and his physical exhaustion came partly from running for far too long, and partly from emotional stress. Apparently, the Confinement act, and its results, had exhausted him emotionally and that exhaustion, had lead to severe stress. Relena gingerly fingered his gun, which lay, discarded, on the bedside table. Half a clip remained in it, which meant he had used the other half. "Heero..." Relena whispered more to herself than to the sleeping man. "Who were you trying to kill?" 

"No one, really." Relena started and her eyes suddenly met the icy Prussian blue of a very awake Heero Yuy. "Just trying to discourage the men chasing me."

Relena let out a relieved breath. "Oh good, you're awake. You were asleep for a full day."

"Mind explaining to me where I am?" Heero demanded steely.

"We found you unconscious in the backyard. You have overall exhaustion, emotional and physical." Relena informed him quickly. "You need sleep."

"No, I don't. I need to kill Suuchin and Katome. I'll be taking my leave now." He threw the blankets off himself, stood, adjusted his clothes, and walked toward the door, grabbing his gun as he did so. "I want my blazer and my gun holster. I have a mission." He examined his gun, clicking the safety off, then on.

"Heero, assassinating Suuchin and Katome will only hurt your purpose!" Relena argued, hitting her legs with her hands once.

Heero gave her a skeptical look. "Relena... do you know my purpose?"

"I have a general idea. You want the Confinement act revoked, right?"

"Very good."

"Heero, if you assassinate them, the government will go after the pilots even more fiercely!"

"Then let them come! The other Gundam Pilots are in agreement about what is to be done! None of us were able to find a battle suitable for our deaths during the war! Even if we did, we ended up winning that battle! This is the one battle we will lose!"

"But why do any of you have to die?" Relena cried furiously, standing and knocking her chair over by accident.

Heero was taken aback by her volume and force, but his face relayed nothing. "Our lives have become pointless. There is no reason to live a pointless life."

"Your life does have a purpose! All those people who were spared because you ended the war! You saved them! You're a hero!" Relena paused for a moment. "You could get a job! Live a normal life! You could!"

Heero narrowed his eyes at the word hero, but then spoke in an even tone. "Impossible."

"Why, impossible!"

"Look at my hands. These hands have taken the lives of countless men, thousands of women, and even thousands of children. So many deaths. My hands are stained with their blood. Blood that cannot simply be washed off. It must be purged and repaid. It is the same with the other pilots. This is the battle we will lose our lives in."

"Quatre wouldn't want it this way, would he?" Relena argued. "Even though I don't know him that well, he's not the kind to wish for death."

"Does Duo seem the kind to be named the God of Death? None of us are what we seem, Relena. I'd have thought you'd have figured that out by now."

Relena paused. Heero never was one to lie. Did all of them want this? "Heero, but..."

"Don't you get this!" Heero raised his voice a bit, startling Relena. It was the first time she had ever heard him speak with any volume or emotion, even if the emotion was anger. "The fact that we consider killing them as our first plan of action proves that we are scarred beyond healing! Death is our only savior to our problems!" Heero paused and continued in a quieter tone. "Our pasts are bathed in blood. Death is our only alternative."

Relena's eyes did their best to portray all the emotions clashing in her head. Pain, anger, and even annoyance. "Heero, listen. Because of the power that Suuchin and Katome now hold, the security is going to be so tight, even you won't be able to get in."

"Not true. I'm the Perfect Soldier, remember?" Heero spat the title out with disdain.

"Yes, but understand this." Relena advanced on him, suddenly gaining a commanding air about her. "Despite the fact that I changed my name back to Darlin, I am still descended from the Peacecraft family. In the name of peace," She stomped her foot. "I forbid you to go."

Heero turned fully to her. "Listen, I have never failed a mission, and I will not fail this one."

"No, Heero. If I let you go, I will be guilty of the same murder you commit." Relena stated firmly, halting about four feet in front of the assassin.

Heero brought the gun up to level with her heart. "I don't know what you think you can do to keep me from killing them, but I assure you, one move of my finger and it's stopped."

"Heero, you won't shoot me. I know you won't."

"Believe what you want, Relena. Ever since I was young, I've been brought up to kill someone just like you in situations just like this one. I will kill you if the need arises." Heero stated icily.

"Heero, I just said it. If I allow you to leave, I will be guilty of the same murder you commit! I will not be responsible for a murder, weather that person deserved it or not!"

Heero paused, almost guiltily, and then continued, his voice made of steel. "That makes no difference to me." He growled his face a stone mask.

"Heero." She almost laughed. "You couldn't shoot me now if you tried. The safety is still on.

"I know that. Are you advising me to turn it off?" Heero narrowed his eyes and obliged, clicking the safety off.

"I won't make that decision, seeing as how you've already made it. You need to decide weather to murder three people, or to find a more peaceful solution to a large problem with a billion catalysts." Relena stood up straight, arms at her sides, offering her unprotected heart to the gun and the man wielding it. He would decide here and now weather or not he would carry out his very fist assassination mission. Her eyes opened at the sound of a metallic click. Heero now held the gun, barrel facing the ceiling, next to his face, his Prussian eyes hidden behind closed eyelids. "Heero? I thought you were going to kill me." She stated, letting out a breath she didn't know she had been holding. Heero headed for the door, the hand holding the gun swinging limply at his side.

He halted at the doorway. "The need didn't arise." He started to head out when a slender hand appeared on his free wrist. He stopped and turned to face Relena. Being this close to her caused his heartbeat to quicken and his wrist seemed to burn under her hand. Something inside his being jumped at her touch, but he quickly suppressed it, and forced his eyes to narrow dangerously. "What?"

"Heero, are you still going to kill Suuchin and Katome?" she wondered quickly.

"Yes. You got a better idea?" he growled, jerking his wrist out of her grasp.

"Well, for starters, why don't we contact the other pilots?" Relena suggested, stepping back a bit. The heat that seemed to emit from his body when he was serious almost seemed to be burning her.

"You talk as if I've decided to stay here." Heero stated emotionlessly.

"Well, you're safe here. The government would never suspect me to shelter a person on the run."

"Safety has never been my top concern. Or have you not noticed that?"

"Oh, Lord above knows I have!" Relena groaned. "Why don't you just contact the others, and decide what to do from there?"

Heero considered it, all the while; his stone mask remained fixated on Relena. He regarded her with an odd sort of suspicion. Almost as if asking what she wanted from him. But there was an unreadable emotion buried in the cemetery of Prussian blue. Relena had no sooner noticed it than Heero's patented 'hn' noise caught her attention. Relena smiled and grabbed his wrist again to pull him into the room and over to the computer.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Hey, Duo! Wake up!" Hilde shouted from the laptop that sat on top of the former pilot's bedroom desk.

A bleary-eyed Duo dragged himself out of bed and sluggishly walked over to his girlfriend. "Hilde? What's with the yelling? I need my sleep, you know."

"Duo, it's after noon. You should've been awake a long time ago." Hilde argued.

"Says who?" Duo challenged.

"Says me!" she cried as if she needed no other argument.

Duo rolled his cobalt eyes and fixed her with a half stern, half asleep glare. "And anyway, why are you in my room? You could just use the computer in your room, you know."

"Yeah, but this computer is the only one that gets email. Besides, it's much more fun invading your personal space." Hilde taunted, getting up and shoving Duo into the seat. "You should see this email you got."

"Duo grunted when she shoved him into the chair, then completely woke up when he saw the email he had received.

angelofdeath

Duo immediately clicked on it, and a message popped up.

"This is an encoded message! Please enter your ID!"

shinigami …

The message appeared, to Hilde, to be a bunch of circles, lines and odd characters. But she figured that Duo understood it considering his eyes were running across the screen, widening and brightening at the encoded sentences. "What does it say?" Hilde finally wondered.

Duo's hand shot into the desk drawer and he pulled out a pad of paper and a pen. Staring at the message, he scribbled down an address. How he had pulled an address out of the scribbles, Hilde had no idea. "Duo, what's going on?" Hilde wondered excitedly, almost laughing. Apparently the email had brought good news.

Duo said nothing, but put his hands on her back and quickly shoved her out of the room. "Hold on." He shut and locked the door.

"Duo! What are you doing?" Hilde yelled, aggravated at the absence of answers. After a few minutes, the door disappeared again and Duo stood, fully decked out in black, as usual. He wore a black jacket over a red zip-up shirt and black pants. (A/N: Think of his outfit in Endless Waltz) He grabbed Hilde's wrist and began running to the front door, grabbing his keys along the way. "Duo, wha?"

"You'll see! Get your jacket and meet me out front!" Duo called back, his eyes sparkling.

Hilde stopped as Duo released her and continued his mad dash toward the front. She had no idea what had gotten into the loon, but she headed to the hall to obey.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Cathy, we can't horde runaway criminals! This is the circus, not the Underground Railroad!" the ringmaster cried. The minute Cathy had suggested that Trowa and Quatre stay with her for the time being, the ringmaster went ballistic. The two were arguing inside the ringmaster's trailer, but at the height of their voices, they could've been standing outside.

Trowa mentally winced at the word 'criminals'. Deep down he knew they weren't criminals, but with all the commotion lately, he had to admit that some part of him believed it. He knew as well as any of the other pilots that this was the battle in which they would pay the price for all the lives they took during the war. Trowa knelt by a caged lion outside the big top, gently stroking its soft mane and whispering quietly to the purring cat. Quatre sat on the ground about ten feet away, leaning against a crate. His hands were folded limply in his lap and his head was tipped back slightly, his eyes squeezed shut in sleep. Trowa glanced at the Arabian for a brief moment before continuing to eavesdrop on the argument going on nearby.

"But we can't just leave them for dead!" Cathy yelled.

"Cathrine, how safe will they be in a circus? And besides, that, with them here, the entire crew is in danger! We can't keep them here!"

"Listen, one of them works here! And he wears a mask all the time! How's anyone going to recognize him? The other one isn't going to be going out and about at all! Not with his injuries!" Cathrine cried back. "And if no one knows they're here, no one is going to come looking for them!"

"No, Cathy. We can't have them here. It's too dangerous!"

Trowa sighed. He knew the outcome of this fight. The ringmaster was a good man, but stubborn as a mule on many things. Apparently, this was one of them. His dark green eyes trailed back to the towhead boy as he moaned and regained consciousness. His head slightly turned to the side to look at Trowa, his light blue eyes shining with a light that always seemed present. However, the light today was weary. They were the eyes of someone trying to put on a brave face. "Hey." Quatre managed.

"How are you feeling?" Trowa wondered, turning back to the lion.

"Excellent." He answered sarcastically. Trowa smirked, not facing him. "Seriously, a little better than before." Quatre sat fully up, still leaning against the box. He paused as he heard Cathy yell. "What's going on?"

"Cathy wants us to stay here until the Confinement Act is revoked. The ringmaster doesn't like the idea." Trowa answered with no energy.

"I see. I guess you can't really blame him. We bring death and destruction wherever we go." Quatre admitted morbidly.

Trowa nodded in agreement. _Ultimately, we will bring on our own death. That is the end we are pursuing._ He let out a sigh and a silence fell between the two of them. As if reading his mind, Quatre sighed and began speaking.

"This is it, isn't it?"

"Huh?" Trowa turned slightly so he could see the man out of his peripheral vision.

"Our last fight."

Trowa turned back to the lion. "Yeah."

"Who's gonna do it?"

"Heero."

Quatre laughed ruefully. "Should've known. He volunteered, right?"

"Yeah." Trowa and Quatre once again fell into silence as the argument in the trailer heated up again.

"What are you afraid of!" Cathy cried.

"I'm afraid of the soldiers that will come to take the boys away. Then they will take away the performers as well as you and I for hoarding them!"

"You're afraid for the performers' safety?" Cathy wondered angrily.

"Long story short, yes, Catherine!" he shouted, jabbing a finger at her face.

"Well, why don't we ask them what they want to do?" Cathy suggested. There was silence in the trailer until a muttered grumble of accent was heard from the outside.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"We simply want to know what you think we should do." the manager called over the crowd of performers after he had explained the situation. "Do we hoard these criminals and face severe punishment? Or do we send them on their way?"

Cathy smiled. This idea clinched the argument in her favor. Many of the performers were friends of Trowa's. They wouldn't kick him out in a million years. She raised her right hand. "All in favor of allowing the boys to stay here!" Hands went up all over the place. The vote was 30 to 70 in the boys' favor. The boys would stay. Cathy looked at the manager who frowned, but nodded at her. She smiled and ran off to give the news to her brother.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Trowa! Trowa!" she cried happily, running to kneel next to the lion-tamer.

"What is it, Cathy?" he wondered quietly.

"We just talked about it, and we've decided to allow you to stay here." She answered with excitement. She looked to Quatre for a reaction.

Quatre was fiddling with his laptop, still leaning against the crate. He looked up at Cathy and smiled. "Thank you, Miss Bloom. But we really can't stay that long."

"Why not?" she wondered, her excitement wilting.

Trowa nodded. "The government won't take too long to catch on. They'll come here after us sooner or later.

Kathy nodded solemnly. Her head popped up when a computerized tone filtered from the laptop on Quatre's legs. The siblings looked over at the Arabian who was buried deep in the examination of his laptop screen. "What's wrong, Quatre?" Cathy wondered quietly. Though at one point she had despised the sight of the towhead, she now found him a very kind person to be around. Not too long ago, she couldn't stand to see him. The young man had represented the world that Cathy so desperately wanted to protect Trowa from; the world of war.

"We may be leaving sooner than you think." Quatre answered distractedly.

"What do you mean?" Cathy wondered, nervous. She didn't want her brother taken from her so soon.

"Trowa, look at this." Quatre commanded quietly. Trowa joined him, leaning over his shoulder to look at the email addresses. One caught his eye. It was obviously the same one that had caught Quatre's.

angelofdeath

"Is that from...?" Trowa trailed off.

"That's him alright. But why would he email us now? An email could be bugged." Quatre pointed out.

"What have we got to lose? Let's see what he has to say." Trowa suggested.

Quatre clicked on it and a warning message appeared.

"This is an encoded message! Please enter your ID!"

arabian1...

After reading the strange message, Trowa's deep voice made a sound almost like a laugh. "So," he began, standing and heading back to the lion. "We're to meet at that address."

"Yeah, but that's on earth. That's a long way away." Quatre stated solemnly.

"Not like we can stay here forever. Eventually we'll get caught." Trowa knelt and once again began stroking the lion. "We'll go. This is our best chance for reaching our objectives."

Quatre nodded to his back. They both jumped slightly when Cathy spoke up. "I'm going with you! I can't let you go alone!"

"Cathy, no. This is too dangerous. We're taking a big step here. We'll be going out into the open without anything to cover us. If you are seen with us, you could be arrested and prosecuted. Besides... without you, the circus has no star." Trowa added brightly as he could afford.

"Even if I stay, the star of the circus is gone. I don't care about the dangers! I want to face them with you! Please let me go!" Cathy begged.

Trowa looked evenly into her eyes, then at Quatre, then back at his sister. "Cathy, this is dangerous. We can't bring you."

"Trowa! I'm coming! You can't leave me here to worry about you!" Catherine cried, tears appearing in her eyes.

"Catherine..." Trowa growled sternly, using her full name as a warning. "... you don't know any of the other pilots. There are at least two out of three that would strongly object that we bring you. It's not a good idea, no matter how you look at it."

"I don't care! I'm coming with you, Trowa, and that's my final word on the matter!"

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"What is it, Thunder?" she asked as he read over the email he had just received.

"Nothing. It's nothing important." He answered monotonely, closing the email.

"Are you sure?" Water asked cautiously.

"Yes."

"But that was from... well... zero one. Didn't he have anything important to say? The guy rarely ever says or does anything frivolous. What's up?"

"Nothing life changing. It was just an update on recent happenings. Nothing that I didn't already know." Thunder growled. Water could tell he was being less than truthful, but he had his reasons for not disclosing information, so she kept it to herself. Thunder closed his eyes. _If I go there, I'll become useless. I'm of much more use here, as a Preventor._ Thunder nodded and wrote his response to the Japanese pilot.

* * *

Kitty-chan: I had way too much fun with the email addresses. XD Review! 


	3. Waiting

Kitty-chan 1: Chapter three! One thing! The songs are all property of Evenescance!

Kitty-chan: Look at dis story grow! This is gonna be fun!

Kitty-chan 3:I know it! The more the merrier!

Duo: The more painkiller the better. Oy.

Kitty-chan 3: 'sees Duo's braid' STRING!

Kitty-chan 12: YAY! 'Kitty-chans tackle Duo'

Duo: Someone shoot them!

Quatre: 'Pops up out of nowhere' Kitty-chan doesn't own the characters from Gundam Wing. 'shmile'

* * *

"Heero? Ranya cooked you some dinner." Relena knocked on the door before slowly stepping onto the plush blue carpet of his room. Her eyes roamed about, but stopped when she realized the former-soldier was absent. Relena groaned. "Now where is he?" 

Ranya shrugged slim shoulders. "Is he still outside?"

"Still? Why is he outside in the first place? His body is exhausted!"

"Yes, well he's trying to build his strength back up." Ranya explained.

"We gotta get him back in here before he kills himself!" Relena cried. She darted toward the back door, as Ranya set the tray of food down on Heero's desk and took off after her boss. They looked out the window at the man outside.

Heero wore his black shorts, and his green tank top was laying a few feet away. There was a bandage wrapped firmly around his middle, protecting his bullet wound from the air. He stood in a defensive position, a mid-sized tree branch in his hand serving as an ersatz weapon. He was panting heavily, and a wet glean of sweat shone on all of his visible skin. Relena could just barely tell, but his entire body was shaking.

"I swear this is suicide." Relena muttered under her breath.

Heero jumped into the air, swiping the air with the stick. He did a front flip, then landed, crouching on the ground. His invisible opponent came at him again, and he shot to his feet. He threw a few lightning punches, then a high sidekick. He jumped up again and threw another kick, apparently meant for a head. But, when he landed on the ground, his exhausted legs gave out, dropping him to the earth. He caught himself before he hit ground and sat there, on his hands and knees, panting heavily.

"Heero?" Relena called running up to him.

Heero heaved a few breaths before speaking. "What?"

"The one rule in my house that I insist be followed is the rule against suicide!" she cried, grabbing his arm to help him up.

Heero rolled his eyes and yanked his arm out of her grasp. "I'm not going to let myself die until I see Suuchin and Katome dead."

"I thought you weren't going to kill them."

"I said I'd listen to your idea. I said nothing about altering my mission." Heero grumbled, then attempted to stand.

"Stay still! I'll call the hospital! You need medical attention!" Relena stood, but turned when something similar to a laugh came from the man on the ground.

"The hospital? That's a joke. If you're going to do that, why not cuff me right now?" Heero finally gave up on trying to stand and dropped to lie on his stomach, pillowing his head on his arms.

Relena's eyes widened in realization as the truth of the man's words hit her. She nodded and walked over to sit down in front of him. "Heero?"

"Hn?"

"What in the heck do you think you're doing out here?"

"What does it look like?"

"It looks like you're trying to work yourself to death."

"Not exactly. If I do die by my own hand, it will be by gun or knife. Not exhaustion."

Relena sweat-dropped. _That was I _not_ the answer I was thinking of!_ "Heero, why do you want to take your own life in the first place?"

"Do I really need to explain it to you?"

Relena smiled and sighed gently, shaking her head. "No, I guess not."

Heero looked at her for a minute. He felt suddenly grateful that she wasn't pushing the matter. She understood that he didn't have any motivation to explain it to anyone… especially her. He decided that he could let her in on other things for not forcing the answers out of him. He looked straight ahead again as he spoke. "I don't plan on dying by my own hands, actually. But, I can't say for sure."

"You think about death a lot, don't you?"

Heero eyed her suspiciously. "I think everyone thinks about death a lot more than you'd think. When we grow up, we constantly say 'I'm going to kill you' when someone does something annoying. They say it only in play, but still… and when we get older, people are saying 'go to hell' a lot. Death is thought about a lot. The very essence of fear is fretting that you will lose your life somehow. One's death is constantly at the back of one's mind, whether we realize it or not." Heero closed his eyes once again and turned his head away from her.

"Still, not as much as it is on your mind."

Heero grunted. "Point taken. But mine's the mind of a soldier."

"Listen, you will kill yourself if you keep this up. Come on inside and take a shower. You should relax. If you don't want to kill yourself by exhaustion, I'd say you should come in… now."

Heero grunted again. Without a word, he gathered up his shirt and followed her inside.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Relena peered into Heero's room. His door was open, after all. The lights were off, save for the light blue glow of Heero's laptop on the desk. The man himself sat at the desk, typing away at the computer. He now wore a white shirt with baggy cargo jeans. She ventured on, quietly speaking. "Heero? Can I come in?"

Heero neither looked at her, nor made a sound. He simply bobbed his head in affirmation and continued to work. Relena entered, leaving the door open, allowing the light from the hallway to somewhat illuminate the floor before her. She finally made it over to his desk and peered over his shoulder at the screen. He was reading some kind of encoded mail. Apparently encoded because all that Relena saw were a bunch of circles and odd characters. "Heero? What are you doing?"

"What does it look like?"

Relena sighed. Heero had a gift of finding the button that would annoy her the most and pushing it with all his might. The one he had just pushed was labeled, 'Answering a Question with a Question'. "It looks like you're answering mail. Who's it from?"

"It's encoded for a reason." He answered monotonely, continuing to read over the mail.

"Yes, so any government officials who could hack into it couldn't read it." Relena set a hand on her slender hip.

"You are a government official, are you not?"

Relena growled at his childish behavior but spoke in a calm tone. "I'm not on Suuchin and Katome's side! You're staying here with me, aren't you?"

"Did I really have a choice in the matter?"

Relena wanted to kiss him for that one. _Wait… kiss him? Would that be a punishment? For him maybe… Let's try that again._

(A/N: Kittychan clears her throat.)

Relena wanted to kick him for that one. She mentally growled and answered. "Yes, you did. You could have left, you know."

"You didn't exactly give me a choice. You grabbed me and dragged me inside."

Relena gave an exasperated sigh. She figured there was no use continuing an argument she was going to lose. Heero was just too good with words. She decided to quibble back to the mail. "So, what does the email say?"

"It's from Wufei." He said, acting as if the previous conversation had no occurred. "He's telling me that ha won't be coming. I have to say that it's a wise move on his part."

"Why?"

"It's much more advantageous for him to remain a Preventor at this point. Even if Suuchin and Katome did find him in the Preventors, they wouldn't think of taking action."

"Why not?"

"Because even though Katome and Suuchin are putting on a face that says they're concerned for the welfare of the people, they're really just radicals for Treize, Quinze and Oz itself. They want revenge for the defeat of Oz and the White Fang."

"But what does that have to do with the Preventors?"

"They're putting on the face of people trying to protect peace, right?"

"Yeah."

"What do the Preventors do?"

"Prevent wars."

"Correct. If they got rid of an organization working with them to, supposedly, protect peace, they'd reveal their ulterior motives. Which is, simply to dispose of the Gundam pilots."

"But, if they found Wufei, wouldn't they just fire him from the Preventors and arrest him instead of disbanding the Preventors entirely?"

"Yes, and no. They could have a reason for disbanding the Preventors. The Preventors know who works there. That means that everyone who works with the Preventors knows that Wufei is there. Their own new laws state that anyone who protects or hides a Gundam Pilot is to be immediately arrested. According to that, they would have to disband the Preventor's whole network.Even they know that anyone who is truly working for peace wouldn't even think about destroying such a useful organization."

Relena stared at him for a minute. _Wow. It's all so complicated, and yet Heero thinks of these things without any effort. Everything he does and considers is so well thought out. He considers every advantage and disadvantage to both his side and his enemy's side. And it's so effortless._ "I see. Have any of the other pilots responded?"

"Wufei was the last. All of them have contacted me now."

"How are they all doing?" She paused, then continued before Heero could give her the answer she was almost positive was coming. "And don't tell me that it's none of my business. Because it very much is. By hiding you in my home, I've become involved in this as much as you. I deserve to know that's going on."

Heero stood and wandered over to his bed, sat on it, and began sifting through his things. He reclined back against a pillow and pulled a sleek, silver object from his bag. Relena had no idea what the object was, but her focus was more on his answer to her question than anything else. She cleared her throat and began to tap her foot slightly. Heero looked up, eyeing her as if he just noticed she was there. He sighed, realizing she wasn't going to let it drop, and looked back to the silver object before speaking. "Wufei, you know. Duo's coming and he's bringing Hilde… don't ask me why. Trowa and his sister are also coming and Quatre's with them."

"Why is Quatre with them? Wouldn't he be coming with the Maguanac corp.?"

"Trowa wrote me extensively about what happened to Quatre. He was with the Maguanacs until the government showed up. They attacked and took all the Maguanacs away, even killed some. Quatre managed to escape with some bad injuries to his leg and back."

"Oh, gosh! Is he alright?"

"Trowa says that the physical wounds are healed. But mentally, he still has a ways to go. Apparently, the Maguanacs that died were killed right in front of Quatre. It was so incredibly bloody that the sight of blood can send him into hysterics and mental relapses of the scene. Trowa says that for the most part, he's perfectly normal. He also says that Quatre's condition is temporary. After a while, he will get over it."

Relena pondered on what had been said, then found two questions for him. "How did Suuchin and Katome justify their bloody murder of the Maguanacs? You pilots have been faced with the death penalty, but killing them there was way outside the line of the law."

"Suuchin and Katome convinced everyone that the reports came back that some of the Maguanacs saw that they were losing to the government troops, and killed themselves. Since the only witnesses were Quatre and the other Maguanacs, there was virtually no one to oppose their story."

"One other thing, how could that killing traumatize Quatre? He was a main soldier in the bloodiest war in history."

"A lot of factors played into the traumatization. It happened under very specific conditions."

"What do you mean? What conditions?"

Heero sighed. It had been a long time since he had to talk this much, but he'd live. "Quatre has never been completely mentally stable since the death of his father. That death caused him to go mad. I remember that well. When he piloted the zero system in that time, it made it even worse. After those things played their hands in this problem, he was so paranoid that he would lose another one of his loved ones. Now, he has. The mental stress it put onto his mind was too much, and it was simply a matter of too many things on his mind at once. His mind broke down, and now it simply has to reboot."

Relena sighed and shifted her gaze to her slippered feet. She looked back at the zero one pilot who had rolled onto his side, his back facing her, a clear sign that he was done talking. But she couldn't resist asking one more question. "How soon do you think they'll be here?"

"None of them were on earth, but they have connections. They could be here in as little as a week."

Relena nodded and gave a small bow to him, though he couldn't see it. A decision was reached in her mind, one that he hadn't even been aware she was considering. She needed to help the five boys. They had done so much for the earth and the space colonies in the past, and they were getting nothing for their efforts. For a moment, the thought of publically trying to defend them passed through her mind, but she immediately dismissed it. The people of the world and the colonies knew where she stood on the Gundams' innocence. With how much of a grip Suuchin and Katome had on everyone, she would be dismissed as biased and unnecissarily emotional. It would do little to help the boys, if at all. If she were to help them, she couldn't be involved with her duties as Vice Foreign Minister. She would lie… difficult, but not impossible. She walked into the hall to see Ranya on her way to her office. "Ranya!" The young woman stopped and turned to face her. Relena closed the door to Heero's bedroom and talked in a hushed tone. "We're going to cause an uproar. Will you help me?"

"Of course, ma'am."

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Quit fiddling with it!" Hilde ordered as Duo once again stuck his hands into his hair.

"I don't like it! My hair gets in the way of everything I do!" Duo complained. His thigh length hair had been unbraided and caught in a low ponytail that now swished about freely. He wore a floor length black overcoat, with gray shoes. Black sunglasses covered his dark blue eyes and a red and white cane-like pole was held in his right hand. "What's the point in all this?"

"Because if any of the security guards figured out who you were, you'd be off to prison before you could say 'Deathscythe'!" Hilde took a breath and continued, linking her arm through his. "Now remember. You're Tran Kadachi. You're headed to Earth on your own business, right?"

"Yeah yeah."

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

**Vice Foreign Minister Darlin: Missing!**

The young woman completely disappeared on Saturday after her assistant, Ranya, left her alone to get some food from nearby restaurant, Panera. "She went in, but never came out." Ranya told detective Ryan Yameshee that day. The people reported to have been in the restaurant that day and time say that they do not remember the girl ever even coming in, but they did hear the scream of a young girl and saw her limo in the parking lot with Ranya leaning against it. Detective searches have started at the restaurant and the Sanc Kingdom, and the entire staff of Panera has been interrogated. Miss Darlin's reluctance to answer to the press in the past has left the location of her personal home a complete mystery. To avoid the press, the Vice Foreign Minister had kept her personal residence a complete secret to everyone, save for the people who work there. No ransom has been ordered, and the detectives are unsure of the motivation behind the kidnapping. More information will be available as it is released.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Heero lay in the lush grass, the minor tune floating in his head. Even though he didn't hear the person, he could sense someone approaching. And he knew who it was. "That was a bold move; faking your own disappearance." He stated monotonely, not bothering to open his eyes.

"Well, I need some time off if I'm to help you guys out. I'll reappear as soon as this blows over." Relena informed him, seating herself next to him on the grass. Something seemed different about him. She wasn't sure what, but it was something. She studied him for a few minutes before her eyes settled on his ear. A silver piece of metal was wrapped around the back of his ear, and then looped back around to nestle right into the opening. _He's wearing headphones! Small ones, probably so no one will see them. What is he listening to? I never imagined Heero listening to music. He's probably listening to police radio signals he hacked into or something._ Her eyes wandered over his body until they chanced upon a small silver object, obviously the thing she had seen him pull out the night before. But, it wasn't a police radio, or any governmental device at all. It was in fact, a sleek, simple cd player. She allowed her eyes to linger on the object, which seemed so alien to the man, before quietly speaking. "Heero, what are you listening to?"

His eyes opened, a bit wide, and he sent a glare her way. Apparently he hadn't planned on her seeing the headphones. And even if she had, he hadn't planned on her saying anything about it. After a second, he relaxed, closing his eyes again. "None of your business."

Relena sighed. "Come on. Who do you think I'll tell if it's such a big secret?"

"It's not a secret. It's just not something that you need to know."

"What if I want to know?"

"Suit yourself." Heero still didn't open his eyes, but took off one earphone and held it out to her. Excited, Relena lay down on the grass next to him (the cord was only so long) and put the offered piece to her ear. She stopped moving to listen carefully to the words of the song.

_Now that I know what I'm without…_

_You can't just leave me…_

_Breathe into me and make me real…_

_Bring… me… … to life_

_Wake me up inside…_

_Wake me up inside…_

_Call my name and save me from the dark…_

_Bid my blood to run…_

_Before I come undone…_

_Save me from the nothing I've become…_

Relena lifted the phone off her ear briefly. "You like Evanescence?"

"I guess so." Heero grunted.

Relena pondered this for a minute before propping herself up on her elbows to look down at him. "What are your favorite songs?"

Heero rolled hidden eyes. He really didn't want to talk, but he'd go with the flow. He pressed the skip button on the CD player and the sound of the spinning cd was heard faintly. A tune began playing softly.

_I'm so tired of being here…_

_Suppressed by all my childish fears…_

_But if you have to leave…_

_I wish that you would just leave…_

'_Cause your presence still lingers here…_

_And it won't leave me alone…_

_These wounds won't seem to heal…_

_This pain is just too real…_

_There's just too much that time cannot erase…_

_You'd cry I'd wipe away all of your tears…_

_You'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears…_

_I held your hand through all of these years…_

_And you still have all of me…_

_You used to captivate me by your resonating light…_

_Now I'm bound by the life you left behind…_

_Your face, it haunts…_

_My once pleasant dreams…_

_Your voice has chased away…_

_All the sanity in me…_

_These wounds won't seem to heal…_

_This paint is just too real…_

_There's just too much that time cannot erase…_

_You'd cry I'd wipe away all of your tears…_

_You'd scream I'd fight away all of you fears…_

_I held your hand through all of these years…_

_And you still have all of me…_

_I tried so hard to tell myself that you're gone…_

_But though you're still with me…_

_I've been alone, all along…_

_You'd cry I'd wipe away all of your tears…_

_You'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears…_

_And I held your hand through all of these years…_

_And you still have all of me… ahhhh_

_Me… ahhhh_

_Me… ahhhh_

_Me… ahhhh_

Relena sighed as the song ended. Heero absently traced his hand down the cord and pressed the skip button a few times. A new song slowly became apparent as Relena strained to hear the melody. After a few minutes, a heavy metal song began, startling her.

_You don't remember me…_

_But I remember you…_

_I lie awake and try so hard not to think of you…_

_But who can decide what they dream? And dream I do…_

_I believe in you…_

_I'll give up everything just to find you…_

_I have to be near you…_

_To live…_

_To breathe…_

_You're taking over me…_

_Have you forgotten all I know…_

_And all we had?_

_You saw me mourning my love for you and touched my hand…_

_I knew you loved me then…_

_I believe in you…_

_I'll give up everything just to find you…_

_I have to be near you…_

_To live…_

_To breathe…_

_You're taking over me…_

_I look in the mirror and see your face…_

_If I look deep enough…_

_So many things inside are just like…_

_You are taking over…_

_I believe in you…_

_I'll give up everything just to find you…_

_I need to be near you…_

_To live…_

_To breathe…_

_You're taking over me…_

_I believe in you… (I believe in you)_

_I'll give up everything just to find you…_

_I need to be near you…_

_To live…_

_To breathe…_

_You're taking over me… (Taking over me)_

_You're taking over me… (Taking over me)_

_You're taking over me…_

"This one is my favorite." Heero stated as if it meant nothing.

"Cool. I like it too."

"Miss Relena!" Ranya called, running across the yard, her shiny light brown hair flowing like a river behind her.

"What is it, Ranya?"

"The paper this morning. It had a large article about your kidnapping. That's a good thing, isn't it?" She said cautiously, stopping in front of them. She gave them a look that wondered if she had interrupted something.

Relena interpreted the look and looked at Heero, who still as almost always, had his eyes hidden behind closed lids. She looked at their positions and paused. Heero was lying on his back, one hand resting on his rising and falling chest, the other pillowing his head against the ground. She lay on her stomach, her torso propped up by her elbows and her face rest only inches away from his. Now that this had come to her attention, she began to feel his warm breath on her face. She quickly threw the headphone off her ear and sat up. Heero calmly caught the thrown item and hooked it back over his own ear. "Yes it is. That way, people know why I'm not in public view. Simple. I'll make my 'struggled escape'," She sighed, striking a dramatic pose, "after the problem with the Confinement Act is over."

"Yes, Miss Relena."

_I look in the mirror and see your face…_

_If I look deep enough…_

_So many things are just like you are taking over…_

_I believe in you…_

_I'll give up everything just to find you…_

_I need to be near you…_

_To live…_

_To breathe…_

_You're taking over me…_

_I believe in you… (I believe in you)_

_I'll give up everything just to find you…_

_I need to be near you…_

_To live…_

_To breathe…_

_You're taking over me… (Taking over me)_

_You're taking over me… (Taking over me)_

_You're taking over me…_

Relena sighed as the song ended. She had borrowed Heero's Evanescence CD and had listened to the song of his choice a few times. She had listened to the rest of the CD as well, and all the songs seemed to portray two things; all consuming pain, and death. "Heero… there's more to life than that."

She sighed again. She didn't have a clue how to convey such a message to someone who had been taught nothing different. She rolled onto her stomach, taking her headphones away from her ears and hanging them around her neck. The three Gundam Pilots were to arrive any day now. It had been over a week. Relena was getting ready to tie Heero to the bed. He was constantly trying to 'build up his strength'. Relena scoffed. _He's going to kill himself. I don't care what he says. He's human as I am, and he has his limits. He's crossed all of them, and he's treading into deep water. He can die from exhaustion as easily as I can._ Relena pushed death out of her mind. Maybe Heero was right. Death did seem to be on her mind a lot lately. But, that was just because Heero was back, wasn't it? She shook her head and put her CD player away. She walked out of her room, leaving the painful music behind.

* * *

Review! 


	4. Union and Discovery

Kitty-chan 1: We do not...

Kitty-chan 2: own any

Kitty-chan 3: of the

Kitty-chan 4: Gundam Wing Characters!

Kitty-chans 1,2,3, 4: NO SUE US!

Quatre: Uhh... at least she's found a use for all of them... heh...

Duo: You consider that a use? Why couldn't we do that? It's our story!

Heero: I prefer that she do it...

Wufei: You would...

* * *

Relena plastered a shiny smile to her face as Ranya showed Trowa Barton, Catherine Bloom, and Quatre Rebaba Winner into the main living room. "Trowa! Quatre! Glad you could make it safely!" she cried, standing to shake hands with them.

"Thank you for allowing us to stay here, Miss Relena." Quatre said quietly, bowing.

"It's no trouble, Quatre. That's what friends are for." Relena answered, her eyes shining.

Trowa lead Catherine to a couch where she sat down. He motioned for Quatre to do the same. Quatre shrugged and sat down next to Catherine, admiring the beautiful house. After the two had been safely seated, Trowa turned to Relena. "May I have a private word with you?" he requested.

Relena's smile wilted and she nodded. Her glance flashed to Quatre for a moment and she suddenly realized that the three of them each had a small duffle bag. She motioned to Pagan. "Pagan, will you show these two to their rooms?" she requested. Catherine looked a bit nervous when she realized Trowa wasn't going with them right now, but she instantly latched onto Quatre's arm. Relena motioned toward the next room and the two entered to sit on two of the armchairs.

"Did Heero receive my mail?" Trowa wondered immediately as soon as they were settled in.

"Yes. He did."

"Did you get a chance to read any of it?"

"No, but Heero explained what you wrote. About Quatre and what happened."

"Did he tell you the specifics? How much do you know?"

"Well," Relena began, sitting back in her seat. "I know that he is traumatized, but not on a serious level. I know the sight of blood can send him into hysterics. Heero explained to me exactly how he was traumatized. But that's all."

"There's one other thing. Don't mention the Maguanacs. Quatre knew all the ones killed personally. He's still trying to get his mind over the initial shock. Once this thing is over, we can…" Trowa hesitated briefly, and then continued. "We can get him some professional help after the issue of the Confinement Act is dealt with."

Relena nodded. _Quatre's so delicate right now, yet he's such a sweet person. How can so much bad happen to such a sweet person. And why? This is getting so painful, and I have a feeling that it's going to get worse before it gets better._

_>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> _

"You are sure that this is the place?" the man demanded, looking at the many pictures of the large residence.

"Yessir. We have some satellite pictures of Relena out on the back lawn with one of the pilots." He set two pictures down on the desk in front of him. The man leaned foreword in his chair to better examine the black and white photo. The first one was a picture of a boy lying on the grass on his stomach. A white material was wrapped around his middle and he looked tired. The girl, obviously Relena was sitting in front of him, talking. The man put down the first picture and picked up the second. A boy with dark hair, the same one as before, laid on the grass, on his back this time, one hand on his chest, the other behind his head. The girl next to him lay on her stomach, her face only inches from his. The girl was plainly Relena Darlin/Peacecraft. He pointed sharply at the secretary. "Bring be the pictures of the Gundam Pilots."

"Yessir." The secretary scurried out of the room and returned after a few minutes, many small photographs in his hands. The man grabbed the small stack and began comparing each individual picture to the boy with Relena. The first one was a boy with long braided hair. The man shook his head and went on. _I think this is him!_ The picture was of the boy's back. He looked as if someone had called his name and he had just barely turned around when the picture was taken. His head was turned to face the camera, though his front faced away. "This is him. Pilot 01. Real name; unknown. Code Name; Heero Yuy. Talk to Katome and request that we send troops to that residence!"

"Yes, Suuchin-sama!"

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"How'd you get here anyway?" Relena wondered.

"We rented a car when we arrived on earth." Trowa answered, with his usual absence of feeling. "Where's Heero, by the way?"

"Pagan went and got his motorcycle back from where he had to abandon it. He's cleaning it." Relena sighed and shook her head. "He loves his bike."

"Hmmm… Why'd he have to abandon it?" Quatre wondered.

"He said that at one point a little over a week ago, he was spotted by the government while heading home. He had entered a more woodsy area of the city, so he drove onto a bike trail. The cars continued to follow, but they couldn't keep up with the bike. So, he eventually lost them and hid his bike and a cluster of bushes. He ran off on foot, but their searchlights spotted him, and so he ran until he got to my house and collapsed. That's when we found him." Relena explained, trying to recall all that Heero had told her of his adventures prior to coming to the house.

"Is it wise for him to be standing out in the front like that? Completely out in the open?" Catherine looked cautiously out the front window. She couldn't see Heero, but she could see his bike, shining spotlessly in the sun.

Relena gave an exasperated sigh. "No. But that guy doesn't concern himself with safety."

Trowa opened his mouth o speak, but was cut off when the sound of a revving engine filtered in from the garage. Catherine looked out the window again to see that Heero's bike was gone. All heads then swiveled to look toward the garage. The motor didn't get distant or faint… it just ran. A few tense moments passed, until Trowa gathered up the guts to break the silence. "Is Heero getting ready to leave?"

"I don't know. He shouldn't be going anywhere. Not with things as they are and him in his condition." Relena answered, her blonde brow furrowed.

"Maybe he's testing?" Quatre cut his own sentence short as Heero marched purposefully into the room, a pair of binoculars hanging about his neck, and a motorcycle jacket and helmet under his arm. The frown that creased his face gave the sign to everyone that something was wrong. He dumped his cargo on Relena's lap and pulled her to her feet. "Heero, what's?"

"Move… now." He commanded evenly. There was little room for argument. He commanded a certain type of respect at certain serious situations, and right now was one of those situations. Quatre couldn't resist asking one question.

"But, Heero!"

"Now!" He yelled, cutting Quatre off. This intimidated all of them, even Trowa, who refused to show it. Heero was intimidating enough with his calm collected voice, and power full body to match, but when he was mad, he could be one of the things nightmares are made of. Thoroughly freaked out, Relena, Catherine and Quatre ran to obey. Trowa calmly showed himself out. Heero jumped to the suitcase as he yelled to Relena. "Relena! Put those things on! Trowa! Get the girl and Quatre into the car and start it!"

Heero leapt up the stairs, taking three at a time. He reached his room and stuffed the binoculars into his black bag. He threw his blazer on over his tank top and long jeans, then slung his bag over his shoulder, so it hung across his chest. In an instant he was back downstairs and at the garage door. The others, luckily for them, had followed his orders, and were now waiting for his command. He darted over to the window of Trowa's Toyota and handed him a small, what looked like, stage microphone. "Follow me. Hook this radio onto your collar. I'll explain things on the way."

Heero returned to his motorcycle where Relena was standing. He knelt on one knee and looked up at her, pointing at the knee that wasn't supporting his weight. Relena found herself entertaining brief flashes of him asking her to marry him. His next words shattered those thoughts. "Hop on the back of the bike." He commanded. Relena sighed at her ridiculous thoughts and obeyed. She put her foot on the indicated knee and hopped onto the back. Heero stood, popped the kickstand up, righted the bike, then swung himself onto the front. "Pull the faceguard down and hold on tight."

Relena obeyed by pulling the faceguard down and latching her arms around Heero's waist. Heero quickly backed out of the garage, then turned around and sped down the driveway, Trowa's car close in tow. "Heero, what's this all about?" Trowa's rich voice asked from the microphone.

"The government found us."

"What? How? And how'd you find out?" Catherine's voice called from shotgun.

"I don't know how they found us, but I spotted a government helicopter headed this way. We need to get someplace else."

The sound of sirens struck dread into at least four of the five fugitives. Relena took a chance and looked back at the police cars racing after them. She turned around and let the side of her helmet rest against Heero's back. _I think I know what was wrong with him now._

"Trowa! Follow me!" Heero called into the radio. The bike lurched foreword as he picked up speed. Trowa's Toyota fell into line behind him and attempted to match his speed.

Gunfire issued from the cars behind them, and Heero's eyes narrowed. Trowa looked in the rear-view mirror for a spilt second, then yelled to Heero. "Keep in front of me! I'll shield you two from the guns!"

"Stay close!" Heero warned. He spotted the same off-road trail he had abandoned his bike on a little over a week ago. He held out his right hand to signal to the car behind him to turn right. The two turned down the trail where Heero lead them in circles and curves until the sound of the sirens and gunshots vanished into the trees. They came to an intersection where Heero pulled over and turned the engine off. He set the kickstand down and lifted Relena off the bike. She removed the helmet and Heero took it from her hands. "Get in the car." He commanded with a stern voice.

"Why?"

"Just do it. The government will be firing at us, and you have a smaller chance of getting shot in the car. Go. Now." Relena pulled the jacket off and handed it to Heero before climbing into the back seat next to Quatre.

As soon as she sat down, Trowa began barking orders. "Quatre and Relena," he began, backing up and following Heero's retreating motorcycle through the forest. "Keep down below the seat. Catherine, keep yourself below the top of your seat as well." The three passengers quietly obeyed, realizing the fact that a stray bullet at this time could mean the end of their lives.

Heero kept his icy eyes trained on the forest trail in front of him at all times, not knowing where he lead them. But, if they continued winding, there was no way that the government would find them. The forest was extremely safe compared to the house as well. It seemed like over an hour before the roughed tires of the motorcycle and the car hit the smooth pavement of the main road they had started on. Heero stopped them, hopped off his bike and walked over to where Trowa had rolled down the window. "We lost them."

"Yeah, but where do we go now?" Trowa inquired slowly.

"There's a more quiet part of town I'm familiar with up ahead. We shouldn't have a problem staying there."

"By quiet, you mean bad? Shifty?" Trowa wondered, his visible eyebrow going up.

"Whatever you wanna call it." Heero shrugged and returned to his bike.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Relena, stay close to me." Heero ordered. "Trowa, keep the girl- "

"I'm his sister!" Catherine cried indignantly.

"Whatever. Keep her close, Trowa. Quatre, guard our backs." The group nodded at the suddenly charismatic man. Heero grabbed Relena's wrist, pulled her close to him, and began walking down the alleyway. Relena went willingly, liking the feeling of having Heero this close to her. The feeling of his hand on her wrist sent delightful shivers down her graceful spine. His grip was a bit tight, so she let a small yelp loose. Heero looked at her for a moment, then loosened his grip and continued. They had ended up in this alleyway after they had safely locked up their vehicles. Heero had insisted that he knew someplace that they could stay. Relena had sworn she saw a small spray of sorrow sprinkle his eyes, but the minute her mind acknowledged it, the spray was gone.

Relena looked around at the many men and women lying about the alley. Punks… gangsters… all looked like common lowlife. Of course, their most baffled looks were sent toward the group of well-dressed strangers. The lowlife actually looked down on them like they were proud lions, strutting their stuff amongst dirt. Showing off their manes and silky coats to those who have none. Relena became a bit unnerved as glares, and seductive looks were sent in her direction. She moved closer to Heero, her protection and shield against their undressing eyes. Heero apparently noticed the closer presence and let go of her wrist for a brief second to firmly grip her hand. Relena looked down at her small hand nestled in his iron grip. She never thought she'd have the opportunity the feel his hand willingly closed around hers. She let a smile curve her lips and gripped his hand back.

Quatre looked about, nervous, but not showing it. Heero had grown up on the streets. He knew how to deal with these types of people. But Quatre had come from a wealthy family. He had no expeirence with punks and gangsters. The looks he was getting were making him severely uncomfortable. He swallowed his doubt, trying to convince his mind that Heero knew what he was doing. He didn't have any weapons with him, save for a pocketknife on his belt, so he wasn't sure how he was going to guard their backs. But, he hoped Heero had a plan.

Catherine gripped Trowa's hand tighteras they moved into the pool of vision of the people about the alley. She wasn't sure if this Heero guy would protect him, but… her brother trusted him, and she'd force herself to take comfort in that. But there was something about Heero that unnerved her. He was like an empty shell. He never showed any emotion. He had an ever-present look on his face that seemed devoid of all feeling. He definitely gave her the creeps, but she would make her mind believe that he could be trusted.

* * *

Kitty-chan 1: Please... 

Kitty-chan 2: Read...

Kitty-chan 3: and...

Kitty-chan 4: Review!


	5. The Oz Base

Kitty-chan 1: We do...

Kitty-chan 2: not own...

Kitty-chan 3: any of...

Kitty-chan 4: the Gundam...

Kitty-chan 5: Wing Characters!

Kitty-chans: YAAAAAAAY!

Heero: 'sighs' Hopeless...

Duo: I know what you mean.

Quatre: This is getting worrysome...

Kitty-chans: 'see Quatre' CUTENESS! 'tackle Quatre'

Quatre: HEEEEEELP! SOMEONE SHOOT THEM!

Trowa: 'picks up a gun and shoots, accidentally shooting Quatre' Oops.

Quatre: Ouch.

Kitty-chans: 'see Duo's braid.' STRING!

Quatre: 'walks in from the kitchen, munching on a donut' What's going on?

Quatre 1: Oh crap...

* * *

The old Oz base was a wasteland of metal, burned uniforms, smog, and ashes. Huge chunks of destroyed mobile suits littered the grounds, a painful reminder of the war. Heero bent his steps toward the destroyed base, still firmly holding Relena's hand. "Heero, why are we here?" she wondered timidly. The grounds reminded her of a ghost town. There wasn't a person about, and it made her wonder if the souls of the killed soldiers haunted the base like they did in old movies. 

"No one will look for us here." He answered, once again emotionless. Relena looked about. This graveyard was not her idea of a hideout, but it wasn't her they were trying to hide. Heero was determined not to be caught until Suuchin and Katome were dead. Heero interrupted her train of thought by speaking. "Plus, there will be plenty of computers we can try to get up and running inside."

"What will you do with them?" Catherine asked.

"We can try to hack into the government files and get the exact location of Suuchin and Katome. Plus, we need to get ahold of Maxwell and Hilde. They still think that we're at Relena's place."

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Heero knelt beside a long line of broken down computers. He, Trowa, and Quatre had spent the last two hours cleaning the place or scrap metal and bits of ceiling that had collapsed during the explosion. Luckily for them, the roof hadn't caved in. Heero plugged his laptop into the wall and typed away.

Trowa and Quatre were at other various computers, attempting to get them working. Catherine and Relena sat off to the side with the few things they had brought with them. They weren't about to go off on their own. This place was falling apart in spots, and the girls didn't want it falling apart on them. After a long silence, Quatre attempted to make conversation. "So, Heero… how'd you know about this place?"

Heero said nothing for a long time. When he did, he voice sounded distantly remorseful. "I destroyed it before I even got Zero."

"You mean this pile of rubble has been like this for over four years?" Trowa exclaimed with an odd sense of calm about him. His eye never parted with his work.

"Yes."

"Why hasn't it been renovated?" Relena asked, joining the conversation.

"This base was one of the biggest bases on earth. This city didn't, and stil doesn't have the money to clean it up." Heero explained.

"Not have the money? How could it be that big?" Catherine questioned.

"The base wasn't the only thing destroyed." Heero said, barely loud enough for the others to hear.

"Hmm? What do you mean?" Relena kept her voice down, trying to be gentle. It almost sounded like this subject was slightly painful for him.

"There was an apartment complex nearby that got caught up in the explosion. The apartment was also destroyed, adding to the rubble and the cost of clean-up." Heero answered. "Trowa, got that computer up yet?"

"Yeah, but the networking cable is shot."

"The cable itself?"

"No, the actual networking system."

"See if you can get it running, Quatre."

"All engines full." He stated, using a light tone. "You?"

"Almost done. I think. Tell me when you get a reaction on your computers." Heero commanded.

"Okay." The two answered in unison.

There was silence for a while, save for the constant tapping of keys. Finally, Heero, of all people, spoke up. "Anything?"

"No." Trowa answered bluntly.

"Nothing." Quatre confirmed.

"Hn…" Heero stood and crawled under a nearby computer, turning onto his back and plunging his adroit hands into the circuts and wires. After a few minutes, his muffled voice protruded from the under the machine. "Relena."

"Hmm?"

"Go into my bag and get my radio out. See if you and Trowa's sister can't?"

"My name's Catherine!"

"I don't give a care. See if you and _Catherine_ can't get ahold of Maxwell and his girlfriend."

"Ok." Relena dug throught the half filled bag and eventaually produced the fist-sized, hand-held radio, setting the other object to the side. "Uh… what do I do after I turn it on?"

_THUD!_ Heero peered out from under the computer, a hand on his head. "Turn it to frequency 02 and hold down the side button to talk." He stated as if it were the most elementary thing on the planet.

_Well, it is to him._ Relena sighed as she grappling with the radio controls.

"Got it!" Quatre cried as the rest of his line of computers came to life.

Trowa nodded in agreement. Heero crawled out from under the computer like a cat and knelt, once more in front of his laptop.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Heero stood on the building, the cold night air dancing about him. But the cold didn't, couldn't bother him. His watch shift wasn't over for another hour. No one had been able to contact Duo or Hilde. At one point, what sounded like a male voice had come through, but it wasn't the Deathscythe pilot. Apparently they had accidentally stumbled onto a police conversation or something of the like. They hadn't caught any of it. No sooner had the sound manifested itself, than it had been drowned in the sea of static. _Oh well. We'll try again tomorrow._ Heero looked out over the metal graveyard, then farther to see the apartment. That cursed apartment, in which dwelt the little girl who had haunted him for the last four years. The little girl had done nothing wrong. She gave him a flower and…

He had killed her. Brutally slain an innocent child. All for what? His mission? His mission was everything. At least it had been at that time. Now he wasn't so sure he really was obliged to have that much passion for a mission that was ignorant to the lives it took. Voices and things past said began to haunt his reverie.

_This is war! Now retrain him at once! Retrain him at once! Retrain him!_

Heero could still feel the pain inflicted on him in his retraining. He traced his hands along his mid-section, arms, neck and face, remembering the bruises and blood that once bathed those areas.

_Our weapon has no use for human kindness! Our weapon!_

Heero almost looked himself over. _Their weapon. Not a human. A weapon of mass destruction. A thing to be used. A means to _their_ end._

_You're right._

Dr. J's voice echoed in his head. _He was with them all along, and I didn't kill him with my own two hands. Heh. I allowed him to kill himself._

_Hey, are you lost?_

Heero's eyes widened as the girl's voice entered his mind. His body seemed too heavy for his legs suddenly, and he dropped to his knees. "Huh?"

_I said, are you lost?_

_I've been lost ever since I was born_.

"Ever since I was bron… and I'm still lost."

_Oh, that's so sad._

_She listened and cared. And I returned the favor by killing her._

_Oh, Heero. That's so sad. Heero, that's so sad. Heero…_

"Heero? Heero?" Relena edged her way onto the roof where Heero was staring at the rubble. But the thing that caught her eye was the fact that his weight rested not on his feet, but on his knees. His body was hunched over, his hands held out before him, as if he were examining them. "Heero?"

Heero sat back, then turned his face on her. "What? You should be in bed."

"Yeah, but… I wanted to know something, but I couldn't sleep on it." She said, clutching the small object to her chest.

Heero turned foreward again. Relena took this as an invitation. She sat down next to him, swinging her legs over the side of the building. She peeked at the object and continued. "Heero, when you told me to get your radio from your bag, I looked through it and I found this." Relena held up a small yellow flower pressed between two pieces of plastic. It looked the same as it had four years ago when the small child had handed it to him. "What is it?"

"It's a flower. What does it look like?" Heero snapped, plucking it from her fingers. Relena flinched a bit. She knew she had, in some way, made him mad.

Relena paused before speaking again. "Where did you get it?"

"None of your business." He stated coldly. Relena sweat-dropped. She was seriously getting tired of that answer. However, she could tell that she had made him angry, so she wouldn't comment on it. But she couldn't resist asking the next question.

"Why do you have it? It's not like you to keep a plant, much less a flower." Relena said, almost laughing. Heero was silent. "Heero, what's wrong?" He again said nothing. He simply stared at the rubble of the apartment building. Relena joined him in staring at the would-be apartment. Though why, she had no idea. She sat there, silently offering her comfort to the man beside her. Finally, with out a word, he got up and headed inside. Relena glanced at her watch. Heero's guard was over.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Have you tracked the radio signal?"

"Yes, Suuchin-sama. It's coming from a destroyed Oz base in Niigata."

"Good. Get Katome on the line!"

"Yessir!"

A man with red hair and beady gray eyes appeared on the screen. "Yes, Suuchin-san?"

"Listen. We've tracked the radio signal. I was coming to you for your advice. Ought we, personally, to go down there to arrest them?"

"Is it nessicary?"

""It might be."

"Let's try this again. Is it wise?"

"Probably not, in view of our lives."

"Then no. Let them come to us. After all, we have what they want." Katome smiled.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Heero! Oh, gosh! Heero! Wake up!" Relena cried frantically, violently shaking the sleeping pilot's shoulders.

"Huh?" Heero groaned, sitting up and rubbing sleep from his eyes. "What is it?"

"You've got to come see the news!" she cried, grabbing his right hand with both of hers. She expected him to violently jerk his hand away, but he didn't. He simply plastered his normal scowl to his face and allowed himself to be lead away. They ran into the computer room where Trowa and the half-awake Quatre (he had just finished his watch) were hunched over a computer which blared the news. Heero caught a bit of it as he entered the room.

"One of the infamous Gundam Pilots was captured yesterday. The pilot of 02, Deathscythe. The pilot's name; Duo Maxwell. Maxwell and an accomplice- "

Heero dashed over to where he could see the male reporter. In a corner, a picture of Duo was shown. He was being held by two guards as he tried to get at the men holding his "accomplice" (Hilde).

"- were arrested yesterday when government officials intercepted a radio transmission between him and the other Gundam Pilots. Efforts are now being made to locate the transmission's source."

"Damn. That was yesterday?" Heero said calmly, already stuffing his laptop into his black bag. He stuffed himself into his blazer and headed for the door. "They will have located us by now. Let's go."

The five teens filed out and headed for the alley that would lead them back to their vehicles.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"This is Water. The line is secure. Go ahead."

"This is Fire and Wind. We have some bad news."

"What is it?" Thunder wondered, leaning foreward in his seat a bit.

"We've been keeping an eye on Suuchin and Katome as you requested, Wu Fei. But it seems that they've found the other pilots." Fire said solemnly.

"What? Have they been arrested?"

"No, but Suuchin and Katome's troops are on their way down there to catch them. I'll send you a recording of today's news in a minute, but there's more bad news." Wind added.

"What now?" Thunder sighed.

"Suuchin and Katome figured in the strength of you pilots when they decided on their battleplan. They've been developing special soldiers simply called, The Elite. The Elite have been trained only to fight the Gundam Pilots. We don't have a figure for how many they have, but they are very dangerous, and we need to contact Yuy and the rest of them immediately. We would have locked onto this sooner, but they have blocked out all intervention from the Preventors. There was nothing we could do." Wind explained.

Thunder rubbed his temples. "Just send me the report for now. I'll get back to this in a minute." After a few minute, Sally began to chat with Nion as Wufei watched and listened to the news. As soon as he was done, he shut the monitor off and stood. _We can't warn them or help them in any way by radio. That's how they got Duo._ A decision was reached in his mind and he turned fully to Water. "We're going to Earth, Sally. Right now!" he ordered.

"But… why?" Sally cried, stopping her conversation in mid sentence.

"I'll explain on the way. Set a course for earth now!"

Sally shrugged and obeyed her partner.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Relena did her best to hold onto Heero's hand as they weaved their way back through the alleyway. He wasn't moving too fast, there were just so many more people in the alley that day. The five young people dashed to and fro, trying to get to their vehicles as soon as possible.

A rush of panic and surprise swept through the crowd, halting the teens in their tracks. They were coming. The government troops were coming. He only had three shots left over in his gun from his target practice at Relena's house. That wouldn't get them anywhere, especially if they were coming with a large force. He looked over and saw many piles of crates off to the side of the alley. He made a few quick estimates, then grabbed Relena and dove off to the side. They landed behind a relatively short pile of crates, but it was the closest pile they could get to. Heero landed on his side, and Relena landed on her side as well. She was pushed up against the crates and Heero was right up against her, locking her between his body and the crates behind her. Heero made no note of their positions, but Relena sure did. She blushed a deep crimson, but stayed still. Heero wrapped an arm around her back and pulled her in close, then put his other hand on her head to pull it down to rest on his shoulder. Relena couldn't help but wonder why Heero had thrown them into such a state. She shifted her eyes to look up at the crates they were hiding behind. They were just tall enough to conceal both of them as long as her body was molded to his so. However, if they lay alongside one another, as Relena would've preferred, someone could look over the top and see them. _Heero really does think about these things efforetlessly. It's amazing._

Relena's breath caught in her throat as she heard the footfalls of a trooper, their guns and weapons rattling threateningly with each one. They seemed to embody doom itself. These men were professionally trained to kill the pilots on the spot if need be. She wrapped her arms under Heero's and gripped his shoulders, hanging on for dear life. Heero ignored her and watched with baited breath as the agent looked around the alley, almost sniffing for their scent.

Heero's eyes flashed to the other three to make sure that they, too had concealed themselves. Quatre was safely curled up in a corner, and Trowa and Catherine were lying in similar positions as Heero and Relena. Trowa looked up so he could just barely see Heero. Heero bobbed his head in the foreboding agent's direction, then nodded. The angent perused the area for a minute longer, before turning and heading onward with the others. A soon as he was positive the agents were gone, he nodded again to Trowa and Quatre and released Relena. Having her so close caused his heartbeat to quicken and a feeling like electricity to shoot up his spine. He almost shook his head. What was he thinking! Relena should be the last thing on his mind right now. Killing Suuchin and Katome was the only thing that mattered. However, he couldn't ignore the way she hesitantly stood, her hands slightly tracing down his arms, and her golden locks of hair carressing his cheek. He shot to his feet and took his mind off the intimate moment by attempting to think of a plan.

Relena smiled at Quatre who was emerging and making his way over to them, as were Trowa and Catherine. Her gaze shifted to Heero who was examining the environment. He didn't do anything more before grabbing her hand and taking off in the direction of their vehicles. After a few minutes, seeming a lifetime, they reached the chained up bike and car. They undid the locks and Heero climbed on his motorcycle while Relena, Trowa, Catherine and Quatre slid into the car. They took off, Heero leading them north, toward, where Heero had found to be, Suuchin and Katome's prison. However, Trowa had no idea where they were going. He was just following Heero.

Gunshots suddenly filled the air as the government closed in behind them. Trowa moved the car into line behind Heero's bike, attempting to protect him. The three passengers ducked below their seats again as Trowa floored the accelerator, attempting to match Heero's speed.

"How's Heero doing?" Relena wondered from her place on the floor.

"He's!" Trowa stopped talking as the man before him swerved and slowed down. "Heero? Are you alright? What happened?"

"I'm fine, why?"

Trowa shook his head and answered Relena's question. "He's fine." Heero sped up again, Trowa following suit.

* * *

Thank for all the great reviews! Listen, if you hate something about teh story, tell me! Keep on reviewing:P  
Kitty-chan 


	6. Hell on Earth

Kitty-chan 1: Time crunch! No time to talk! I don't own Gundam Wing! Enjoy! Review! Sorry it's been so long since I updated. School is murder. AH! No time! Bye!

* * *

Heero collapsed onto the floor of the room he had chosen as his own for now. They had finally reached another town about 20 miles from Yamagata. Suuchin and Katome's prison, according to Heero, was in Yamagata. That was where they believed Hilde and Duo were being held. They'd get them out, then go after the two politicians. Currently, they were staying at an old "uninhabitable" hotel. It may have been supposedly uninhabitable, but it would do for the short time they'd be there. 

Heero looked at the plush carpet floor, his weight resting on his hands and knees. He winced, feeling the blood slowly run down his back and sides, soaking his green tank top. He sighed and laid down fully on his stomach. He knew if he lay here for a few hours, he'd die just the way he wanted. At the hands of the enemy. He closed his eyes, savoring the feeling of pressure receding with the blood. The pressure of his mission, the pressure of finding Maxwell, and fighting himself over Relena. The name brought calm to the raging seas of his mind.

"Heero?" Relena whispered, stepping into his room. She slowly flicked on the lights to see Heero prostrate on the floor, blood soaking the entire back of his shirt. "Heero! Oh, god, Heero!" she screamed, running over to him. She grabbed his shoulder, and yelled, "Trowa!" She turned back to the wounded man. "Heero, can you hear me?"

Heero's glazed eyes turned to look at her. "Relena?"

"Shh. it's ok Heero. You're going to be alright." Relena soothed, setting a hand on his hair.

Heero sighed drowzily. Normally he would have shooed her away for baby-talking him, but he was too delerious to do much of anything right now. He simply lay on the floor, trying his best to focus on her voice. Something in the back of his dulled mind begged him to hold on. He wasn't finished with something. He wasn't sure what, but he knew he needed to stay alive.

Trowa soon appeared in the doorway, and two other sets of footsteps followed his arrival, signaling Catherine and Quatre's approach. Something snapped in Relena's mind. "Trowa! You can't let Quatre in here!"

Remembering the towhead's trauma, Trowa nodded and turned to the two other, spreading his arms out to signal them to stop. "Trowa? What's wrong?" Quatre wondered innocently, halting his movement.

"Nothing that you need to concern yourself with. I want you and Catherine to go and get me a large bowl of water and a rag." Trowa stated sternly.

"Trowa?" Katherine whispered, staring into his dark green eyes, a question in her own.

But Trowa would not answer it. With a steeled look in his eye, he shook his head. "Go, Cathy. Nevermind this."

Hesitantly, Catherine nodded and turned to Quatre. "Come on, Quatre. Let's go." She trusted her brother wholeheartedly. She needn't question him. With a backwards glance at Trowa, Quatre ran off after his best friend's adopted sister.

Trowa returned to the room and headed for a closet in the corner. "Trowa? What are you doing?" Relena wondered quietly, gently stroking Heero's hair.

"These old places probably had some type of emergeny first aide kid in them. Aha." He pulled a red and white box from the closet and dropped it next to the injured pilot. He knelt down and pulled the back of his shirt up to his neck. The wound was a ghastly sight. The bullet wound he had gotten when he first encountered the government agents had not completely healed, and had opened up to bleed once more. The newer bullet had impaled his back not an inch away from the first one. The newer bullet had not gone in as deeply since his leather jacket had offered some protection.

"Is he going to be okay?" Relena inquired worriedly, beginning to carress his cheek with her thumb.

"I'm sure he will be. He's the Perfect Soldier, remember? He's not going to be himself for a while, but he'll pull through." The wound properly analyzed, Trowa collected a candle and a box of matches from the emergency drawer. "How fast he heals depends on how much blood he's lost. How long has he been up here?"

"Forty-five minutes at most." Relena answered slowly.

Trowa nodded and took a rag from the first aide box. He dabbed blood away until he could clearly see the wound. He then held the rag over the two wounds and looked up at the girl. "Will you hold this? It'll slow the bleeding at the least." Relena nodded and obeyed. Trowa shook his hands free of some blood before lighting a single match and pressing the flame to the wick of the candle. After it was lit, he blew the match out and pulled a large pair of tweezers from the box as well. He held the metal in the flame until it glowed red, then began heating another part of them. After the entire set of tweezers had been sterilized, he looked up at Relena. "You may want to look away."

"Why?" Relena took her hand away from the rag, and Trowa pulled it away from the wound.

"I'm going to remove the bullet." Trowa tossed the rag aside, then continued. "If he yells or gives us any indication that he's in pain, he's in good shape."

"Huh? Why wouldn't he be in pain?"

"He wouldn't feel it if he's delerious enough." Trowa answered. Relena nodded hesitantly before turning her head to the side. Trowa bent down to whisper in Heero's ear. "Brace yourself."

Silence blanketed the room for a few minutes while Trowa worked. Finally, Relena's voice cut through the quiet. "When are going to get it out?"

"I just did." Trowa answered from behind her. Relena's head snapped to the front as Trowa held up the bloodied tweezers, a small red metal piece held between the two prongs.

"Heero!" Relena cried, putting a hand to his head. His glazed eyes stared straight ahead, half-open. He was awake, but not all there.

"Relax. He'll be fine. It'll just take a bit more time for him to recover." Trowa assured her. He pulled a white pad and a bundle of gauze from the first aide kit and began to wrap his back.

A scream cut through the hotel halls. Trowa and Relena's eyes shot to the doorway where Quatre stood, frozen. His eyes wide, his pupils mere, uneven dots in pools of pale blue. His face was sheet white and his body began to shake. _Dammit!_ Trowa's mind cursed. He stood and began slowly inching toward his screaming friend. "Quatre?"

"They!" Quatre's voice cracked as he discontinued his screams.

"Quatre!" Trowa called, more force in his voice.

"They... they've come! They're coming!" Quatre's hands slid up his arms to grip his own shoulders, attempting to shield himself from his own mind's eye.

"Quatre!" Trowa continued to call.

"Trowa! What's going on?" Catherine cried, running up with a bowl of water and a rag. She nearly dropped the items when she caught sight of Heero in the room. She looked over at Trowa and slowly set the bowl down. She looked over at Quatre, her mind putting two and two together.

"I… can't… I… couldn't!"

"Quatre! Stop it!" Trowa took a step foreward, a hand extended.

"No! Stay away! You won't hurt them! Gotta save… Abdul!" Quatre shook his head vigorously, pressing his palms to his temples. Trowa paused, realizing that Abdul had been one of the Maguanacs killed.

"Quatre! Snap out of it! It's Trowa!" He yelled, attempting to stifle his emotions. Seeing Quatre in this state made it difficult.

Quatre took a quick glance at the brunette, then took off down the hall, stumbling, and hitting the walls occasionally. Trowa took a few steps toward his friend, but was stopped by his sister's hand. "Wait, Trowa. It's my fault Quatre saw that. You finish helping gloom- and- doom boy. I'll bring Quatre around."

Trowa looked after his friend, then looked back at Catherine's eyes. "Alright. Calm him down, Cathy." He turned and ran into the room, the bowl of water in his arms.

"I will."

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Catherine ran after Quatre, but the blonde had a headstart. She turned a corner as she heard his retreating footsteps, but she couldn't see him. He was well trained. He wasn't going to be easy to catch. Not until he stopped running, that is. For a while, she ran down halls, turned corners, ran up and down stairs, and simply followed her instinct. After she felt totally lost, she ran down to the lobby and began searching up. She got to the third floor, and noticed that the light to one room was on. She pressed her ear to the door, and heard a soft wimper come from within. She sighed, smiling gently. Quietly, she opened the door and flicked on the entrance lights, but kept the rest of the room in the soft darkness, illuminated faintly by the dim light outside. She closed the door behind her, and slowly inched her way into the room. Quatre sat in the far corner, hunched up against the wall, knees drawn up to his chest. He seemed to be rocking back and forth slightly, small whimpers escaping his dry throat. Catherine walked casually, yet slowly up to him. "Hi, Quatre." No response. He didn't even acknowledge her presence. She tried again. "Quatre? Can you hear me?" She knew he could, but it just seemed like the right thing to say.

His pale, dead eyes flashed her an accusing look, almost blaming her for his condition. He mumbled something angrily.

Catherine smiled gently and squatted down on her haunches to get eye level with him. "What did you say?"

"Get away… from me!" he cried, his voice still quivering.

"Quatre! It's me, Cathy. You know, Trowa's siter?" Catherine cried, losing her cool slightly in worry.

"S-Stop it! No more! Abdul! … No!… Rasid!" Quatre gripped his head, screaming again.

"Quatre! Quatre!" Catherine yelled. He seemed to ignore her, but he quieted his cries. Instead, he continued to hold his head, panting.

In a last effort to calm him down, Cathy threw her arms around his chest. "Quatre! Please! Snap out of it!" Quatre stopped shaking and leaned back against the wall. His entire body relaxed, and his eyes slipped closed. "Quatre?"

His breathing slowed, and returned to normal. His half-awake gaze shifted to the girl. "Catherine?" She looked at him and smiled, sitting up. He looked so tired. "What…?" he slurred. The woman pulled the man against her, resting his head against her shoulder. The boy made no struggle. He seemed as if he couldn't.

Catherine now felt a bit awkward. She didn't know what to do next, but she could easily guess that he was feeling rather vunerable now, so she attempted to console him. "Shhh. It's alright." She swished his hair out of his eyes, which were returning to normal.

"I… feel so… tired." He whispered weakly.

"Then sleep, Quatre. I'll stay here with you. You won't be alone." She whispered back. She rocked gently back and forth, and his body relaxed against her.

"But… what?" Quatre began, only half-awake.

"Shh… don't worry about anything right now." She cooed, continuing to rock. "Just sleep. You need the rest."

"But… I don't understand…" Quatre whispered slowly.

"You don't need to right now."

"I'm…" he seemed hesitant.

"What's wrong?"

"I'm scared." He stated quietly.

"It's alright, there's nothing that can hurt you now. Just go to sleep." She got no other response as his breathing slowed, and his eyes disappeared behind his eyelids.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Trowa rushed back into the room, the bowl of water almost spilling over with all the movement. He set it down and soaked the rag before wringing its contents out over Heero's back. The water wrung from the rag washed a lot of blood away, and Trowa used the rag itself to wash the rest off. He got a brown bottle of disinfectant out of the kit, and gently poured a small amout out onto the wounds. He then washed the access disinfectant off with the rag (cleaned off in the bowl) and wrapped the man's back up with the gauze and large pad. As soon as he was done, he began packing the things away. "There. He won't be himself for a while. He's lost far too much blood. And I'm also not too sure how effective these materials are, considering how old this hotel is. But, it's the best we've got. Right now, and for a while, he'll be delerious. There's not much of the Perfect Soldier left in him for right now."

"Alright. You go get cleaned up and go check on Quatre. I'll stay with him." Relena suggested.

"You sure?" Trowa wondered, slipping his hands under Heero's shoulders and knees.

"Yeah. You go ahead. If anyone can help calm him down, you can." Relena smiled as Trowa lifted Heero off the ground. He carried the man out the door and into the hall. The girl followed, a confused expression in her eyes. "Where are we going?"

"We'll put him on a clean surface. We can put him in the next room over." Trowa entered the indicated room, setting the man down on the made bed, then dashing out the door to look for his sister, and best friend.

Relena pulled a chair over to the bed and sat down, never taking her eyes off his still form. Heero lay there, staring at the ceiling. His eyes portrayed neither life, nor death. Nothing. "Uh… Heero?" His eyes wandered around, as if searching for the voice. Eventually, they landed on her. She smiled gently. "Hi, Heero. You alright?"

"Relena?"

"Yep, it's me." She smiled, tears brimming in her eyes.

He stared at her, his vision so fuzzy he had to identify the form next to him as Relen simply by her voice. "Relena."

"I'm here." She didn't know what else to say. He wasn't requesting anything, he wasn't stating anything. He was simply saying her name.

"You… you're…"

_At least he said something other than my name._ "What about me?"

"You're…" his shaky hand slowly journeyed toward her face until his calloused fingers touched her cheek. They gently carressed her tears away. "You're crying. Why?"

Relena's eyes slightly widened. She then gave an angelic smile. "I'm just worried."

"About what?"

"About you?"

"What?… What's wrong… with me?"

"Don't you worry about that now. You just need to focus on getting better. Just go to sleep." Relena took his hand away from her face and cradled it in her own.

"I… I can't sleep."

Relena almost laughed. She felt like she was speaking to a child. "Why not? Have you tried?"

"No. I don't want to sleep."

"Why? You need sleep. You won't get better if you don't."

"I don't… trust them."

"Huh? Who are you talking about?"

"Them."

"Who's them?"

"I don't… know. But I don't trust them. I can't sleep while they're around. I won't sleep while they're around."

"Well, I'll protect you." Relena offered gently.

"No, I don't trust them."

"Heero, I'm not them! I'm Relena." She pushed.

"No, I will not trust them. I won't sleep."

"Heero, _They_ are not around. You need sleep." _He's not making an ounce of sense._ Then a thought struck her. _Oh, I forgot. He's delerious, so he shouldn't be making sense in his condition._ "I'll keep _Them_ away from you."

"No, I don't trust…" Heero trailed off, sitting up in the bed, a look of what seemed like realization on his face. Really, his mind was completely blank. He sent a piercing glare at her before attempting to stand. But, suddenly his legs seemed less then sollid, and he fell to the carpeted floor, jarring his wound, and drawing a grunt of paint from his throat. Relena stood, a patient smile on her lips. _I'll help you Heero. Whatever that means, I'll help you._ She knelt down by his head and began to slowly stroke his hair.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Trowa entered the room. He had seen the light coming from under the door, and figured this must be where his sister and friend were. "Quatre? Catherine?"

"Shh!" Catherine cried from her place in the corner. "Quatre's asleep." Trowa allowed a smirk to curve his lips and sashayed over to where the two were, trying not to make a sound.

"My sister is a miracle worker. Who knew you'd be able to calm him down that quickly? I thought you didn't like him."

"Well, I thought about the whole idea of you and the others. I finally made myself realize that the reason you fight is not because Quatre tells you to, but because that's what you were raised to do. It's not Quatre's fault you became a Gundam Pilot. And besides all that, I should thank him. He has saved your life, and our entire colony before." Catherine explained. Trowa knelt next to her and sqeezed her shoulder a bit.

"He is a very kind person. He is the kind of person that I cannot contend with. I could never show kindness toward someon who did to me what Dorothy did to him, but he managed it. He has shown me kindness when I rejected him as an ally. I am proud to call him a brother."

"Yes. If you consider him a brother, then I welcome him to our little siblings-but-not-family." She smiled gently. Trowa couldn't help but allow yet another smile to grace his elven face.

"Thanks, sis. After what he's been through, he needs family more than ever now."

"Then we'll be here for him." Catherine continued smiling and Trowa simply nodded.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Relena sighed and leaned backagainst the wall, tempted to fall asleep herself. Heero had not moved after he fell, so Relena had gathered his head into her lap, and he soon fell asleep. It had now been an hour since then, and her legs were starting to go numb. He now slept peacefully, and Relena couldn't help but notice how beautiful his face was. His sharp facial features gave him a mature look, and his cool prussian eyes only added to it. She was even tempted to run her finger along his high cheek and jawbone, but she thought better of it. It could wake him. She wouldn't want that. It would be unhealthy for him, not to mention awkward to her. She thought about the very fact that he was asleep. _Heero was brought up to trust and care for no one, and yet, he fell asleep in my lap. He is completely open to attack when he sleeps, and yet here he is, laying in my lap. Thank you for trusting me, Heero._ "It means a lot to me."

"Huh?" Heero looked up at her face. She hadn't even noticed him wake.

Relena blushed. _Did I say that out loud?_

"What means a lot to you?" Heero sounded a bit more like himself, but his words still lacked force and were slightly slurred.

"Uh… nothing. How do you feel?"

"Like a train wreck." He confided, shifting his head a bit.

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"Whatever."

"Do you remember what happened?"

"It's a bit fuzzy. I don't think I want to know the details, though." He looked around the, otherwise, vacant room. "Where is everyone?" He wondered, his voice slurring even more as he neared unconsciousness again.

Relena didn't feel like explaining the deal with Quatre right this moment. "They're doing their own things."

"They aren't here, are they?"

"Who?"

"Them."

_Oh boy. Here we go again._ She'd play along. "No, they're not here." It was almost funny how she could be lying and not even know it. For all she knew, he could be talking about the dust mites in the bed beside them.

"Good." His eyes slipped closed and soon his breathing slowed.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Two days quickly passed since the Heero and Quatre situation had ocurred, and Heero sat on the couch in the lobby, flipping through channels on an old tv, hoping to get some information on Suuchin and Katome. Thus far, there was nill. He reached a news station and kept it there. For a moment there was something about their previous residence, the Oz base, then it switched to something very familiar. Heero paused, then called, "Quat!" He stopped in mid-sentence. _Oh my god._ He watched in horror at the telivision screen as it depicted a riot. _Quatre would not do good to see this._ It certainly wasn't anything that affected their current mission, but man, it would affect Quatre sooner or later. He stood and flipped the tv off. He heard a creak in the floor and turned to see something disappear around the corner. Sensing someone behind the corner, he drew a daggar and persued the person. He stopped in his tracks. "Quatre…"

Quatre smiled, though he was shaking. His breathing was heavy, but he did not scream or yell. Heero sheathed his daggar and fixed the boy with a steely glare, though pity was buried deep within. Quatre looked up at him, tears already cascading down his pale cheeks. Heero sighed. "I'm sorry." It was the only thing he could think of to say. It wasn't exactly like him to say something of the like, but his mind was a bit jumbled ever since the incident with the gunshot.

Quatre's smile eventually fell and he dropped to his knees. "So that…" he began, his sobs breaking his words up. Heero knelt before him and bowed his head. "… Master Quatre… might…" he covered his face with his hands, his sobs still silent. "… live." Heero stayed by his side for the entire time the boy was grieving. After about thirty minutes, Catherine and Trowa appeared, Relena close behind. Catherine and Trowa knelt beside him and immediately asked what was wrong.

Catherine looked to Heero for a response. Heero shook his head. "I will not answer any questions. Do not push him. Let him be. When he is ready to tell you what has happened, he will." With that said, Heero walked off, leaving the others to tend to the grief stricken boy.

Another day crawled past, and Heero and Quatre seemed to be getting back to normal. Quatre seemed to have zoned out but was putting on the face that nothing was wrong. He acted like his cheerful, light-hearted self as always, but everyone could tell it was a façade. No one questioned him on it however. Heero's warning had made them all keep quiet about it. Heero didn't usually fiddle with emotions, but when he did, it was usually serious. Heero himself continued to talk of a _Them_. No one had any idea what he was talking about, but they went along with it. They figured it as a side effect of his blood loss.

"We need to get going. The government will catch up with us if we stay here much longer, and I don't want to be around when they find us." Heero said suddenly one day, packing up his black bag and heading out the door.

"But are you well enough to drive your motorcycle?" Relena wondered, putting a hand on his arm.

Heero glared at her and pulled his arm away. "Hn…"

Relena stood still. Heero promptly turned to walk out the door. "He seems back to himself." She said, walking back to where Catherine, Trowa and Quatre were standing.

"Hmm... there's only one way to be sure. Heero!" Trowa called running up to stop his journey to the garage. "Why are you so rude to Relena? You could at least show some respect for the Vice Foreign Minister of Earth. She deserves an answer once in a while."

Heero glared daggars at the performer. "Trowa?"

"What?"

"Omae o korasu."

The decision made that Heero was in fact well enough to drive, the group packed up. Trowa loaded everything into the car. Catherine and Quatre had already climbed into the car when Relena paused. "Dangit!" she cried, climbing back out. "I'll be right back. I forgot something in the hotel room." As she disappeared back into the lobby, Trowa also let out a curse.

Heero groaned. "Now what?"

"I'm almost out of gas. I'll be right back. I gotta go get some." Heero nodded and the black Toyota pulled out and drove away, not pausing to let its two passengers out.

Relena came back out carrying a small bag. She looked between Heero, who was fiddling with his laptop, and the spot where the Toyota had just been. "Where'd the others go?"

Heero, not taking his eyes off the laptop screen answered, "Trowa had to get gas for the car. He'll be back in a bit."

"Oh. Ok." Relena sighed and silence settled over the parking garage. Relena looked the motorcycle and its owner over once in boredom, then continued to study her old worn out white tennis shoes. She stupidly scuffed her shoe against a rock she found and attempted to make small talk. "So… what are you going to do after this whole confinement act thing is over?" _You know the answer to that you moron! Great way to start a conversation!_ She mentally berated herself, resisting the urge to slap herself.

"You should know the answer to that." Heero said monotonely.

Relena sighed sadly. "Heero, why do you want to die?"

Heero paused, then repeated something he said when he first woke up at the Sanc Kingdom. "My past is bathed in blood. Death is my only alternative."

"Heero, there's more to life than death!"

"Maybe for you. But for me, it's not that simple."

"Why? If you would just give up the fighting, you could live a normal life! There's more to life than pain! More than suffering! More than death! There's joy, fun and love! Heero, have you ever been loved by someone?"

"Irrelenvant. Love is a hindering emotion that blinds one to reality. Accountability on a person in love can, and will, absolutely plummet."

_Oh, shut up, Computer for brains!_ "Heero! Statistics have no place in emotion!"

"Emotions have no place in war."

"Heero, life is not all about war. War is something that destroys kindhearted youngmen, like you."

"War is something that all people deal with. War is something in the human nature. It completes a person. People like me can only feel fulfilled on the battlfield. That is what I was created to do. I was created and molded to fight."

Relena sighed and gave up the argument. There was just no use arguing with him. He had his mind set, and it wasn't going to change. However, she silently said a prayer that some of what she had said had gotten through to him. Trowa soon pulled up and they left for Suuchin and Katome's prison.

* * *

Review!


	7. Final Loses

Kitty-chan1: Hi! Sorry about the brief disclaimer last time. But, it's our second to last chapter everyone!  
Kitty-chans 2-7: AWWW!  
Duo: Thank God.  
Kitty-chans: GRRRRR!  
Duo; Yipe!  
Kitty-chan 1: Ready everyone!  
Kitty-chans 2-7: YAY!  
Kitty-chan 1: We do...  
Kitty-chan 2: ... not own...  
Kitty-chan 3: ... any of...  
Kitty-chan 4: ... the Gundam...  
Kitty-chan 5: ... Wing characters...  
Kitty-chan 6: ... They are...  
Kitty-chan 7: ... not ours.  
Kitty-chans: YAYYAYYYYYYAYYYYYYAYYY!

* * *

"Katome-sama! Suuchin-sama!" an officer cried, running to catch up with the two security guarded men. 

"What is it, Kaman?" Suuchin turned fully to face him, his normal arrogant air settling about him.

The officer caught his breath and saluted. Suuchin saluted back, as did Katome and the officer continued. "The three remaining pilots were not at the reported residence, sir."

"That is fine." Katome said quickly, stepping on anything Suuchin had to say on the matter. "Carry on."

The officer saluted once again and walked away. Suuchin waited until Katome had waved the group of personal security guards awaybefore rounding on his partner. "Sankan! How can you be so calm? We're nearing our deadline, and if we don't capture the other pilots within that deadline, we won't be given the chance to punish them our own way!"

"Calm down, Akun. We are driving them to Yamagata. They will soon come to us. We have what they want, after all." The two approached a barred cell door, and Katome motioned to the two creatures inside.

A dark blue haired girl knelt next to a man lying on the cold stone floor of the cell. He wore dark, worn ripped clothes, and his hair was long and tangled. The girl touched his shoulder, having to use both hands since her wrists were bound, then motioned to the approaching men. The boy turned slowly onto his side, having trouble due to his beaten body and his bound hands. He winced, but sent an icy glare up at the two politicians. The glare belonged to one Duo Maxwell. The girl slid her bound hands over the boy's head to wrap her arms around Duo's shoulders. "Why won't you leave him alone already? Don't you think you've done enough?"

"Oh, not nearly enough, my dear. There is still much to come." Katome answered, a purring tint in his voice.

Hilde's grip on Duo tightened. Duo moved away so that Hilde was forced to release him. "Stop, Hilde. There's no point in wasting your breath on them." Duo looked briefly over at the wall, and smirked.

Katome put a smirk of his own on his arrogent lips. "Hello, Mr. Maxwell. How are we doing today?"

"Fine and dandy, you bastard." Duo answered roughly, smirking. He sighed. _It figures that the one time they get ordered not to beat me, they do. But, I guess that's the story of my life._ "If you think beating me will get you answers, you're dead wrong."

"Don't you worry. You'll break soon enough." Suuchin stated, carelessly leaning against the wall.

"How about if I put it this way. If you kill me, I'll give you all the information you want." Duo said, sitting up.

Suuchin raised an eyebrow and leaned on the bars of the cell, a power-lusting air about him now. "Keep that attitude up, and you won't last long."

"I just told you to kill me. You really think I want to?"

"None of you will last much longer. Your friends are headed here. It won't be long before we have all five of you at the mercy of our whips. You will all die, one way or the other." Katome stated cooly.

"You will die even if we have to kill you ourselves. We will get revenge for Oz."

"And White Fang. You won't get away with what you've done." Katome growled.

"You boys are, by far, the most bitter old geezers I've ever had the displeasure to meet, huh?" Duo purred, sticking his tongue out at them.

"You little brat." Katome began, his voice dangerously even. "Watch your mouth or I'll be sure you're the first to die. You'll get the electric chair if I have to bribe the judge."

_Exactly what I wanted to hear._ Duo smiled weakly. _Just a bit more information._ "I just have one question. Why blame us for the war?" Suuchin and Katome both hesitated. Duo's mouth became a tight thin line. _Come on, you guys are gonna kill me, right? No need to worry about me telling anyone else!_

The two men seemed to simultaneously decide that it was safe enough to speak. Suuchin was the one who spoke. "Starting the war is the only thing serious enough to blame you for that is obvious to everyone, and worthy of the death penalty."

"So, you admit that we didn't start the war, then?" Duo smirked.

"Any idiot can see that." Katome snapped. "We're just lucky that the people in power will let anyone influence their ideals. People of earth are weak. Why do you think Master Milliardo was so intent on ridding the universe of it? A noble cause indeed."

"So, you admit that the whole thing was started by OZ and Dekim Barton of the Barton foundation when they put Operation Meteor into action?" Duo demanded, growling now.

"OZ and Dekim Barton may have begun the war, but our cause was noble. We were simply trying to save the earth from itself. If OZ or Master Milliardo ruled the ESUN, then there would be no more wars. There would be total pacifism. OZ would overtake the earth!"

"And rule it and the colonies as a monarchy." Duo completed Suuchin's thought.

"A monarchy is better than anarchy. And anarchy is just what you caused for OZ. Now you're going to pay for what you pilots have done." Katome growled, whistling for a soldier to enter. As soon as the soldier saluted, the politician motioned toward the exit. "Get Maxwell out here. He needs to be taught a lesson. As for the rest of the troops, I want everyone out of the building and watching for approaching enemies. When one is sighted, inform me immediately!"

"Yessir!"

Duo closed his eyes in submission. He knew what type of beating lie ahead of him for his arrogance. _It was worth it, though._

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"No!" Relena cried. "We're coming!" She set her hands to her hips, as did Catherine.

"You'll endanger the mission." Heero insisted.

"Listen, we came along to help, and that's exactly what we're going to do!" Catherine argued, tapping her foot.

Quatre stood. "Trowa, Heero, swallow your pride and admit that they can help us. I don't know about you but I've learned that it's not easy to dissuade these two from anything. But, I want you to swear to us that you'll get out if things get serious." Quatre rounded on the two and pointed purposefully at them. The two girls nodded in agreement. "There. Now let's stop fiddling around here and go." Trowa and Heero begrudgingly agreed and they headed toward the building.

Heero pulled a small metal cube from his black bag and stuck it to that wall, where it stayed. The group, not noticing him, continued and he immediately caught up with them. The prison they had reached, Heero insisted, was where Suuchin and Katome were currently hiding at. It was just on the outskirts of Yamagata, and it actually looked pretty nice. It didn't look like anything but a normal building save for the fact that there were no windows, and seemingly no doors. They got to what was supposed to be the front, but the only thing Relena saw was a flat wall. Catherine crossed her arms. "Now what? There's no way in."

Heero turned and glared at her. "Shut up." He whispered. "You want to let them know we're paying them a visit?" He looked down either side of the building. There were a group of guards stationed at each corner of the building, hoping to increase their surveilance to make up for the small number of soldiers that worked here. However, when they made it to the wall supposedly the front door, there was sufficient space for the girls to conceal themselves while Heero worked. He approached the side, and began tapping around. After a few minutes, a small control pannel appeared. He fiddled with the buttons for a minute before the doors lumbered open. Catherine blushed and laughed quietly. The other four ran into the building and Heero placed a small metal cube on the control pannel before darting in. The hall was quiet and almost pitch black. Heero's voice was quiet, but they could all hear him. "Relena and Catherine stay back." He commanded. The three boys headed foreward, and the girls soon followed. They found no one in the halls. _Probably because the entire force is outside watching for us to enter._

_>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>_

Duo moaned as he attempted to sit up. Hilde pushed him back down, tears falling down her cheeks. "Please, Duo, stay still. You'll hurt yourself more."

Duo growled at Suuchin and obeyed Hilde's command. "When I get out of this... you're going to pay. You're going to pay... dearly."

"I would be scared if I didn't know that you're not making it out of here alive, Gundam pilot." Katome answered arrogantly.

"If you kill me, you'll get a lotta hell from the ESUN hardliners." Duo smirked at his arrogance and began to fiddle with his shackles. The energy it had taken to sustain sentence itself had taken a lot out of him, and he now sank back to the ground, Hilde hunching down next to him.

"Do you realize how easy it would be to make it look like a suicide?" Suuchin inquired, smirking.

Duo smiled ruefully from his prostrate position. "I'm really in a fix now, eh, Hilde?" Hilde could make herself respond to his comment.

The brief silence was shattered as the door burst open and a black-haired man stood in the doorway, a gun gripped firmly in his hand. "Preventors! Freeze!" A girl dressed in the same uniform as the man followed, a gun also present in her palm. She seemed hesitant. _We don't have a warrant for this. I hope Wufei knows what he's doing._

"What is the meaning of this?" Suuchin yelled.

"Don't play innocent! I'm Wufei Chang of the Preventors!" the officer cried. "Hands up!"

The two men slowly obeyed, Katome's hand brushing against a red button on the way up. Red lights flashed through the building, wailing sirens echoing down the halls. Within minutes, thousands of footsteps were heard approaching the room. Confused, Heero, Trowa, Quatre, Relena, and Catherine appeared in the doorway. Heero surveyed the room. He wasn't sure what the sirens were for, but he did know one thing; his enemy was right in front of him. His hand flashed and suddenly his gun was aimed at Katome's head, the safety already disabled. For now, a single gunshot was fired, but Heero's gun was not the source. Heero dropped his gun, holding his bleeding hand. He looked to the only other door in the room to see many security guards flooding into the room, one with a gun aimed straight at him. Heero and the other two boys dashed behind the doorway, pulling the girls with them. Heero shoved Relena away with his good hand. "Go now!" he cried, pulling a daggar from his belt.

"Go where?"

"You know where to go! Go get Duo and Hilde out!" He demanded. Relena nodded and she and Catherine ran down the hall to search for the cell doors. As soon as the Perfect soldier was sure the two girls were out of danger, he threw himself into the fight, knocking down Security guards left and right. He kept his icy eyes on his destination in the back. Suuchin and Katome.

Trowa also began fighting the guards. He kicked one man in the temple, then struck another one's gut. He hip-tossed another only to find himself face to face with the barrel of a gun. He stood up straight, panting. "Bye, kid." The guard purred.

_Good-bye, Catherine._ A gunshot rattled the eardrums of everyone there.

"TROWA!"

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"I hope everyone will beokay." Relena sighed and continued running. "Is it just me or do we seem to be turning left a lot?"

"It's not you." Catherine sweatdropped, but then halted as a room they were passing caught her gray eyes. "Relena, come look at this!"

The girls walked in and found themselves in a control room of somesort. The far wall was lined with metal doors, all without doorknobs. Relena put herself behind the controling desk and looked it over. There were a few labels there, which she recognized to be cell numbers. She pointed at the light above the middle door. "Catherine! I think they're in that cell!" The red light was turned on, while all the others remained off. Catherine nodded and pulled the lever that sat beside the door. Hilde turned as the door to her cell opened and her eyes brightened at the sight of Relena in the background.

"Hey! It's you!" She cried, smiling.

Relena darted into the cell and began to help Duo to his feet. Her movement halted, as did everyone elses' as they caught sight of the halted action outside the cell immediately following the gunshot.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Trowa fell backwards toward the floor. But… he didn't feel any pain. _Wha… am I dying?_ Then reality hit him in the form of the hard stone floor. He wasn't the one hit. A limp body landed on his own, mere seconds after he hit the ground. Another shot was heard and Trowa's assailant dropped to the ground. Heero stood behind him, a smikong gun in his hand, and almost a sympathetic look in his steely eyes. Trowa sat up, looking around. Attention seemed to be focused on the creature lying on his lap. He was afraid to do it, but he looked down. _No…_

Two sparkling, blue eyes smiled up at him from a familiar pale face. A gentle smile graced his lips, tormenting him in the midst of sacrifice. "Q- Quatre!" Trowa cried. Herolled the arabian boy fully onto his back and rested him on his knee.

"Hi, Trowa." Quatre forced out. The pain in his back was becoming unbearable, but he knew he wouldn't feel it much longer.

"Quatre, you… you… you moron! Why'd you…?

"You saved me… you saved… my soul… Trowa. Now… it's my turn… to save you."

"Quatre, you bastard." Trowa cried quietly. Quatre smiled slightly at his curse. "I'm not worth your friggin life!"

"Believe me, you are… my friend. I have nothing… left here… You have your sister to live for… but my family has gone." Quatre closed his eyes slowly.

Trowa shook his head. "What about the Maguanacs? They need you!"

"They… were executed a while… ago, Trowa." Trowa looked briefly to Heero for an explination.

Heero bobbed his head. "They rioted and got themselves killed."

Trowa turned back to to dying man. "But… your…?"

"My sisters?" Quatre interrupted. "Most of them… thought I died a while ago… They'll never know… I'll finally be with… my father… and Rasid. I'll wait… for you… Trowa."

"Quatre?... QUATRE!"

Catherine stared at the two men and sank to her knees. _Quatre… rest in peace my brother._ No amount of yelling would help now. Quatre Rebaba Winner was dead. She could see the sparkle of tears on her remaining family's face, and knew that the guards were about to be in major trouble.

"T-Trowa… Quatre…" Duo managed, still attempting to stand. "Quatre…" Relena, Hilde, and Catherine guided Duo into the back room and closed the cell door. Just as they were about to walk out of the control room, Duo planted his feet. "Wait… gotta get it."

"Get what, Duo?" Hilde wondered gently.

Duo pulled her and the others over to one of the control desks. He fiddled with the buttons for a few minutes before pulling a small black object from a machine and slipping it into his tattered jacket. Only then did he allow himself to be taken from the room.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Trowa turned his tear-streaked face on the group of gurards. He slid Quatre's body off his knee, and stood. Despite the tears trickling down the soft skin of his face, his eyes betrayed nothing. Sadness, anger and fear were absent. Rage guided his actions as the fight ensued once again. The room exploded with sound and motion as everyone in the room began fighting again.

Catherine, Relena and Hilde soon arrived to set Duo down on the floor in the corner. Relena crawled away a bit to find Heero while Catherine made her way to check on Quatre's body. Hilde checked Duo up and down. She smiled. "You're gonna be alright, won't you Duo?" Duo's eyes had closed gently, but they slowly cracked open to give her a bleary-eyed look.

"I'm the... God of Death. I don't... go down... so easily."

She smiled again in relief, but thenfroze as the sound of a gun click was heard behind her. She shoved Duo back a bit, covering him with her body. Duo's eyes widened as he realized who and what was behind her. The girl cringed, but did not move. _I'll protect you, Duo. I love you, and I don't want you to get hurt._ She braced herself for the feeling of the bullet in her back, but none came. Instead, she heard a voice come from further behind than the agent was.

"Hey, Moron! Back here!"

Duo pushed Hilde off to the side and got to his knees to stand, but doubled over as his injured stomach wounds loudly protested. "Wufei! Don't! You'll get yourself killed!"

_Then it's a satisfaction that Treize's battle couldn't give me._ "Over here! You wanna real challenge, you cowardly weakling?"

The guard took the goad and charged, aiming the gun at the chinese pilot's head. Wufei spun around and threw his leg out, kicking the gun from his hand and twisting the man's wrist to the side. The agent yelled, but dropped onto his good hand and swung his legs around, sweeping Wufei's legs out from under him. Wufei landed hard on his back. The guard jumped up to plunge his foot into Wufei's belly, but the pilot was a bit quicker than that. He swung his legs up and, catching the man by his chest, threw him behind him, and into the far wall. Wufei shot energetically to his feet and faced his opponent as he struggeld to stand.

"WUFEI, BEHIND YOU!"

Wufei's scream of agony filled the room and motion seemed to once again slow to a stop as another infamous Gundam pilot fell. Wufei's body crumpled to the ground, blood already working on soaking his immaculate uniform. "WUFEI!" Sally screamed. She rushed to her partner's side. She lifted him into a reclined postion and urged him to open his eyes.

Wufei slowly complied and focused on the other preventor, but mainly on her tears. "Why are you crying… weak onna."

At that moment, Sally would've given anything on earth to hear him say that over and over again, if it would keep him with her. "Don't go, Wufei. You're a Gundam Pilot! You're too strong to be killed by a bullet!" She yelled angrily, tears continuing to fall down her face.

"Wufei... you... you... I told you!" Duo yelled from the corner. "I told you! I told you to stay away!"

Wufei smiled weakly at their angry words, knowing that they only spoke so because they cared. There was a warm feeling that festered in his chest, standing out amidst the icy feeling that was consuming the rest of his body. "I told you... I was weak."

"Shut up! Shut up!" Sally yelled, shaking her head. She was silent for a minute, lying her head down on his chest. "Please, Wufei, hang on long enough for us to get a doctor."

Wufei's glazed eyes narrowed. "No. No... doctors... This is exactly... how it should be. Treize couldn't.. finish me off. I guess this bastard... did what he couldn't." He smiled, motioning to his assailant with his eyes.

"What am I supposed to say to that, you coward!" Sally demanded.

Wufei rolledhis eyes. "Good-bye… would be… appropriate." He managed to give a bearly visible smile.

There was a long silence as Sally debated wheather or not to comply with his odd request. "Good-bye... Wufei."She complied, the tears coming heavier now. But Wufei was already gone, his gentle smile frozen on his cold lips. Sally lowered her head to rest on her falled comrade's chest again. _Rest in peace, my friend._ She heavved a burdened sighe, and quickly snatched up Wufei's dropped gun, leveled the barrel with a heart, and fired, avenging her partner's death. Wufei's murderer dropped lifelessly to the floor, and Heero and Trowa faced off against the last two of Katome and Suuchin's troops.

Heero smirked at one of the agents. He darted foreward and solidly planted his fist in the man's gut, then downed him with a lightning kick to the temple. Trowa was similarly occupied. He slammed his foot into the man's lower back, then jumped and rotated his hips to smack the top of his foot into his face. The circus performer landed with the gracefulness of a cat, and stood, glaring daggers at Suuchin and Katome. Heero picked his gun off the ground and held it up. "Don't move." He commanded evenly to the two enemy politicians. The men had no choice but to obey."Trowa, Take the girls and Maxwell out to the car and get going. I'll… catch up to you later."

Trowa took note of the hesitation in his voice, but sensed that he was in no way going to talk about it. He nodded and hoisted Duo onto his back before leading them out. For around twenty minutes, no one said or did anything. Silence remained thick between the two politicians and the murderous pilot. Suuchin finally sighed and held up his hands. "If you're going to shoot us, please just do it." He said dully. "The suspense is killing me."

Heero shook his head, not taking his eyes off of them. "Iie. That would be too kind of a death for bastards like you." Two pairs of eyes widened, but could do nothing lest the bullet of Heero's gun halt them. It was a while later when Relena's voice came through on the communicator. "Heero, come on! What are you doing?" she yelled frantically.

Heero held up a small metal object, closing his eyes. _Only if I was to live…_ "Getting rid of Them."

-Click-

BOOOOOOOM!

The current residents of the small Toyota covered their ears as the prison they had only just recently left exploded in a burst of flame. Relena jumped in her seat, and Trowa sqealed the car to a stop. The blonde jumped out of the car, and anxiously waited for Heero to arrive on his motorcycle. He would be here any minute, riding quickly up to tell her that it was all over. No such reassurance came. They waited for a full twenty minutes more, but Heero Yuy did not return. Relena sank to her knees, tears threatening her eyes. Only one thing could remain in her mind for more than a few seconds. _Heero… how could you…?_

_

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_

Kitty-chan 1: Yesh, I know. Sad, isn't it? Sorry about the character deaths! I warned you!  
Kitty-chans:cry:  
Heero: Just read and review onegaishimasu.


	8. Relena's Mourning

Kitty-chan 1: Aww!  
Kitty-chan 2: Last chapter!  
Kitty-chan 3: If you don't like 1xR...  
Kitty-chan 4: ... we suggest that you...  
Kitty-chan 5: ... leave right now.  
Kitty-chan 6: Some fluffiness...  
Kitty-chan 7: ... may occur.  
Kitty-chan 8: You have been warned!  
Heero: Oy...

* * *

Vice Foreign Minister- Returned!

Vice Foreign Minister Darlin turned herself into the police along with Gundam Pilot Trowa Barton yesterday. Miss Darlin refuses to give any answers to questions asked about her abductors or the abduction, however, she assured everyone that the abductors were both killed. Charges still face Barton, pilot of Gundam 03 Heavyarms, and his public trial will be held next Thursday at 7:00 pm on channel eight news.

Gundam Pilots – In Custody

Gundam pilot Duo Maxwell turned himself into the police yesterday evening, claiming that he had evidence of Suuchin and Katome's deceit and the pilots' innocence. I think we're all looking foreword to hearing this one. His trial will be along with Trowa Barton's (see Vice Foreig Minister – Returned!).

Pilots Accounted For

The prison in Yamagata, where Suuchin and Katome were last seen, was found nothing more than a pile of rubble. The bodies of many people were found amidst the large structure. The most recognizable were Sankan Katome, Akun Suuchin, and Gundam pilots Chang Wufei and Quatre Winner. Four of five pilots have been located, but the body of the last Gundam pilot has yet to be found.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Duo approached the podium, a calm collected air about him. "As everyone here surely knows, my fiancee, Hilde, and I were held prisoner by Suuchin and Katome. They were given orders, by the government, to treat us humanely. I have medical reports and injuries themselves that give enough proof to say that they beat me on a regular basis. However, that is not the case I am here to argue.

"Almost three years ago, war was declared between Oz, and the Alliance. Being a Gundam Pilot, I only knew one enemy. Oz. However, my orders were to protect both the earth and the colonies. With the risks Oz was willing to take, you can imagine how difficult this objective was.

"Before the war had even begun, a man named Dekim Barton set Operation meteor in motion. The basic outline of this plan was to send a colony flying toward earth, and have the Gundam's move in to take control in the ensuing chaos. These plans were thwarted however, by myself and four other individuals who took the Gundams and guided the fate of these machines to a more positive end. Those are the facts. If you want to argue that we started a war that we were not involved in at the start, that's fine. But none of your arguments will live up to the facts that I will submit to this court. As proof, I would like to present this to the judge." He pulled the small black object he had taken from the computer from his jacket and set it down. "This is a recording from a security camera that they had in my cell. I believe it has sufficient information on it." A security guard took the tape, and handed it to the judge. "After you watch the tape, I think you will understand. If you see that and still think that we triggered the most bloody war in history, then, maybe we deserve your judgement." Duo closed his eyes in submission, and reclaimed his seat beside Hilde.

Trowa was called to the stand. He sighed, and slowly opened his eyes. "I feel that I have no right to say anything on this matter. I do not believe that I started the war, but I also do not believe that I can defend myself against what you say. I am burdened by the countless lives that I took during the war, and nothing I can do will ever repay those who lost on my account. I submit to your decision. I want it known that if our sentence is the death penalty, I ask that those who have lost loved ones because of me find some peace in the fact that that I no longer exist in this world. May my death bring peace to you." His submission complete, he took his seat next to Catherine, who squeezed his hand.

Relena stepped up to thepodium last. She took a deep breath before beginning to speak slowly, and clearly, as if to emphasize everything that she said. "Though I am a politician, and realize that I have virtually no power to change the fate of these boys, I must declare my resentment of the decision reached. I am here to say that these boys did nothing to provoke the war's start. On May 15, AC 195, the shooting star, also known as Wing Gundam, plummeted toward earth at the same time as my father and I did. Wing Gundam was headed for Asia when Oz colonel Zechs Marquise locked onto him. Wing Gundam turned slightly, but never showed any signs of aggression. Zechs' ship released a ground Leo to attack, so technically, Oz made the first move. These boys did not start the war. And even if you continue to argue that the Gundams coming to earth started the war, you have to realize that they wouldn't have had to come to earth if Dekim Barton of the Barton foundation hadn't tried to put Operation Meteor into motion. The war that has passed was far too bloody and involved too many people to be started by a group of five. If anyone initially started the war, it was Oz. If anything, these boys saved the world. They put a stop to Marriemea's autocracy, and they saved earth from White Fang's Libra cannon. I'm asking you all if the penalty of death is a punishment fit for ones as these boys.

"What you will see on that tape is engraved forever in my mind. Quatre Winner, a casualty in that room, was a kind, loving man that gave up everything to risk it all in a war he had no obligation to participate in. The people he gave everything to protect reward him for his sacrifice in death? Is this real justice? No, of course not. There was no one who could tell you that better than Chang Wufei, another death in that room. Those two willingly gave everything to save their friends. Heero Yuy, the last of the people we had to leave behind, gave his life so that we could escape the prison, away from the building that was doomed to explode. I doubt even he knew it was to blow up, but he didn't care. He stayed to watch Suuchin and Katome until the authorities arrived. He payed for that with his life. These three gave willingly. The choice is up to you."

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Final Verdict: Not Guilty!

Due to the evidence presented by Duo Maxwell and Relena Darlin, all charges against the five pilots have been dropped.

An anonomous engineer did an analysis of the prison. His diagnosis read that a stray bullet had knocked some things loose in the main computer control room, caused a fire, and then set the engines to explode.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Thanks for everything, Relena." Duo smiled as he and Hilde headed for the car.

Relena smiled back. "No problem. Come back and see me! You're welcome any time. You had better invite me to the wedding!" she cried playfully, pointing an accusing finger at the both of them.

"Don't you worry about that!" Hilde cried, getting into the car. "Bye!" Duo started up the car and drove off, Relena waving at them until they were out of sight.

She returned to the door and calmly walked back into her house, her happy mood vanishing almost instantly. Her butler and almost all of her personal assisstants had gone home for the night. Trowa, Catherine, Duo and Hilde had set off for their home colonies. Almost as soon as the final verdict was declared, Trowa and Hilde had gone back to the circus on L2. Duo and Hilde waited around at Relena's house until Duo was well enough for travel. It seemed so long since that day that they had been forced to evacuate Relena's home because of the approaching government. Really, it had only been a month or two.

Relena wandered anround the vacant house, her feet leading her almost by will of their own. As if she had no control over where they took her. They eventually carried her to one of the spare rooms. It was the one Duo had stayed in, and previous to him, Heero. She walked in and sat on the bed, letting her eyes and mind wander about the room, remembering that Heero had once occupied this space. It had only been a few silent minutes when a browm head popped in the door.

"Miss Relena?" Ranya wondered quietly.

"Mmm?"

"I'm heading home for the night." She smiled brightly.

"Alright. Goodnight."

"Goodnight. I'll see you tomorrow." Ranya bowed slightly and disappeared.

Relena looked out the window at the quick lightning that flashed across the sky. The rain was not very heavy yet, but the sky was gray and the patter of rain on the roof seemed to amplify her pain. _Heero… why did you have to die?_ _Why couldn't you have gotten out of the building before you destroyed it?_ Tears welled in her aqua eyes and they soon began their mournful dance down her porcelein face. She realized that she had not yet shed a single tear at Heero's death. But now, those lost tears were to be compensated for. She slumped back against the headboard as tears continued to trail down her cheeks. _I loved him. I know I did, but why didn't I say anything about it! If I told him, maybe he would've stayed! Maybe it could've done something!_ Another voice in her mind gave her a quick scolding. _Are you kidding me! Telling him how you feel would have probably made him want to do it more!_ She sighed in defeat_. He would've rejected me. He would've pushed me away, just like he did on Libra. Only, he wouldn't let me back. He'd hate me._ She put her hands to her chest as a familiar tune floated into her mind. _But I need him close to me. He's like my other half. I can't exist without him. He's my strength. My goal. Everything I do, I know that he is there somewhere, watching me. He's the only reason I can survive my job!_

Her eyes opened when she realized that the tune in her head was not coming from her mind itself, but rather from a cd player on the desk. It was her own. Duo had asked to borrow it when he discovered Heero's left _Evenescence_ cd. Apparently, he hadn't turned it off before he left. Relena picked up the headphones, and paused when she clearly heard the tune playing. She slipped the headphones over her ears, and lowered the volume to clearly hear the song. However, this time, the words had a different meaning. As if the song was written just for her.

_I believe in you…_

_I'll give up everything just to find you…_

_I have to be near you…_

_To live…_

_To breathe…_

_You're taking over me…_

_I look in the mirror and see your face…_

_If I look deep enough…_

_So many things inside are just like…_

_You are taking over…_

Relena stared across the room, and into the bathroom mirror, almost as if to test the song's lyrics. It was true. She could almost see those cold, icy blue eyes staring back at her, but there was something they were trying to communicate.

_I'm sorry, Relena._

Tears once again cascaded down her cheeks, but she did not look away. She wanted to stare into those eyes forever. But, it semeed to kill her just to look at them. Seeing what wasn't there. Wanting something, someone, more than life, yet it was beyond reach. The song continued, for it was ignorant to Relena's mourning.

_I believe in you…_

_I'll give up everything just to find you…_

_I have to be near you…_

_To live…_

_To breathe…_

She seemed to edit the last line in her mind, so it seemed as if the singer sang the line the way Relena imagined it.

_You've taken over me!_

The Vice Foreign Minister didn't bother to listen to the rest of the song. She pulled the headphones off and finally tore her gaze away from Heero's, trying to allow her mind to accept his death.

RING! RING!

Relena looked down at her pocket, where her white flip phone was ringing wildly. _I wonder how long that's been going._ "Relena." She stated cheerily, picking it up and putting it to her ear.

"Miss? It's Ranya. What took you so long to answer?"

"Oh, sorry. I was just… thinking. What did you need?"

"I just got out of the driveway. I think you may want to look outside."

"Oh… ok. Thanks."

"Bye!"

"See you tomorrow." She pushed the off button on her phone and closed it. Obeying Ranya's suggestion, she stood to brush aside the curtains that covered the window to the front yard. For a few minutes, she saw nothing. But then, a small person came into view. Someone was walking down the driveway. They walked slowly, seeming tired, and probably drenched to the bone.

She raced downstairs, slipping her feet into some slippers on the way, grabbed an umbrella and arn out the door. She opened the umbrella and ran out to meet her visitor. She got about ten feet away when she stopped, and dropped the umbrella. She wanted to scream. Run away. Was her mind playing tricks on her? But at the same time, she wanted to believe the messages her eyes were sending her.

Heero Yuy stood before her in the pouring rain. Hands tucked into his pockets and wet brown hair plastered to his face, he was alive and well. Unmentioned, wrapped wounds sat on his left leg and right shoulder. White t-shirt, light blue jeans, and yellow combat boots, Heero stood before her, said nothing, did nothing. He looked up at her, his lips slightly curved in a smile.

Relena's tears stared anew, mingling with the rainwater that now tumbled down her face. She didn't care what he did now. She ran foreward, throwing herself against his chest, and clutching his soaked through shirt for dear life, as if he would disappear if she were to let go. "Heero!" She stayed like that for a long time, trying to figure out what his reaction was going to be. Something caught her attention, and distracted her from her analysis of his reation. With the side of her face pressed against his chest, she could hear the thumping of his heart. She had never heard it before. Suddenly, he seemed more human. He may have been a killing machine, but she knew that the heart she heard now was beating in his chest in the war, same as it was now. She noticed that the thumps were not remaining the same, but seemed to be getting faster, and she became aware of the sigh he heaved.

Then, something happened that Relena had only dreamed about. She felt Heero's arms remove his hands from his pockets and encircle her, pulling her in close. His cheek came down to rest on the top of her head, and Relena held on all the more. "Heero, I saw the explosion, and you didn't come back! I thought you were gone!"

"I'm here, Relena. And, if it pleases you, I won't leave again."

"You promise?" Relena whispered timidly.

"I promise."

"Good." Relena backed away and took his hand. "Oh, you're freezing! We need to get inside!"

She pulled him into the house and sat him down on the couch before running upstairs to get a blanket. Heero sat on the couch, staring at his feet. _I promised myself. I… gave myself a mission. I've never failed a mission… and I won't fail one now!_ Relena draped the blanket around his shoulders, and immediately dashed out to make some hot tea. But, what was he to say? _I can't say nothing. I walked all the way here thinking about it, and I can't back down now. But, I'm no good with emotions._ After a few minutes, Relena returned again and handed him a steaming mug of tea. He gave her a small, rare smile. "Arigitou."

"Do itashimashite" She smiled as well. She sat down next to him and watched him sip at the tea. After a few minutes, she looked out the front window again, occupied with watching the rain, and knowing that Heero was beside her.

_Maybe words won't be needed…_

Relena fell back against the couch and sighed, resisting the urge to lean over on his shoulder. She didn't want to freak him out. He looked like he had been on a long walk. He was probably tired. Something icy touched her hand, then drew away. She looked up to see that Heero had begun to rest his weight on one of his hands, but had withdrawn when he realized that he had set his hand down on hers by accident. She sat up straight, and pondered her actions before placing her hand over his and sqeezing it a bit. Heero set his mug down and looked over at her. Relena sighed. She didn't know exactly what she was doing, but she did know that she had regretted her silence before, and she didn't want to do that again. "Heero… I wa!"

An index finger had pressed against her lips. A cold one at that. Heero blinked and shook his head. "You don't have to say anything, Relena." Relena paused. He knew? Did he really know she loved him? Her thoughts were confirmed as his lips, now warmed up, closed over hers. For a moment, she was shocked. But now, she didn't care what his reasonings were. She closed her eyes and returned his kiss with fervor, wrapping her arms around hhis neck.

When they pulled away, a blush colored her face, and she could see a slight blush on his cheeks as well. "You knew? All along, you knew?"

Heero shook his head. "No, but I knew coming back here was something I needed to do. Even if you didn't feel the same way, I needed to risk it, if only for my own sanity."

Relena sighed and looked at her knees. After a few minutes of silence, and few sips of tea coming from Heero, she looked up and gave him a stare. "What happened at the prison? Why didn't you come back to the car when the building exploded if you survived?"

Heero placed his drink down and looked out the window. "I held the gun on them for around twenty minutes, so that you all would have time to get a safe distance away. I don't know whether it was my malice toward them, or the fact that I was unsure that two bullets would end their lives, but I decided to blow the place up. But, before I did, I prosmised myself something. I gave myself a mission. I swore that only if I were to live, would I come back here and talk to you. When the explosion occurred, I was knocked unconscious. But, I woke up beneath two large pieces of the ceiling that had fallen at the same time and had created a shelter over me. I had pieces of glass imbedded in my arm and leg, but I was alive. I took care of my wounds, and by the time I was getting back to being able to walk normally, I knew that they would be sending people in to examine what had happened. If the government found out that a pilot had murdered Suuchin and Katome, then it would've created a whole new set of problems. So, I used some of the contacts I had established with Doctor J and myself recommended as a skilled engineer to perform the examination myself."

"You were the anonymous engineer?" Relena cried, remembering the papers. "You sneak!"

"What else did you expect?" Heero raised an eyesbrow, almost seriously.

"Not much of anything else, huh?"Relena giggled. She stared at Heero for a while. "I'm glad you came back." She leaned foreward and pressed her lips to his again. Heero put a hand to her back and pulled her in close. As soon as the kiss had lived out its life, Relena scooted closer to Heero, almost sitting in his lap, leaning against his chest. Heero pulled the blanket away from his legs and wrapped it around her. They sat together in silence, watching the rain. However, now that Relena looked at it with Heero, it seemed to dance from the sky rather than fall.

Heero couldn't explain what he was feeling at the moment. He had found someone to protect. Someone who he would gladly give his life for. Someone who would motivate him to continue living. Someone who would accept him for who he was. He had found the thing worth living for, and it proved to him that there really is more to life than death.

* * *

Kitty-chan 1: Well, I hope you enjoyed this story! We sure did!  
Kitty-chan 8: Oh yeah! It was a lot of fun!  
Wufei:holds up large yellow gun: DIE KITTY-CHANS!  
Kitty-chans: EEP!  
Wufei:zaps the Kitty-chans and they all go back into one Kitty-chan:  
Kitty-chan: Aww!  
Pilots:Victory dance:


End file.
